Pota
Of West African origin, meaning "born on a journey or born while traveling".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Pota. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Pota today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pota births was 1918 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pota. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Pota. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1918
9 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
1971 SSA rank
#9,247
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Pota: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Pota from the 1910s through to the 1970s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 19 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Pota by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Pota during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Potas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Pota
The name Pota has its origins in Sanskrit, one of the oldest Indo-Aryan languages that flourished in ancient India. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "pota," which means "grandson" or "descendant." This name has been in use since ancient times and was primarily given to boys in various parts of the Indian subcontinent.
One of the earliest known references to the name Pota can be found in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, which dates back to around the 8th century BCE. In this ancient text, Pota is mentioned as the grandson of the legendary king Shantanu and the son of Vichitraveerya.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Pota. One such figure was Pota Bhatta (c. 11th century CE), a renowned Sanskrit scholar and grammarian from the Bharadvaja gotra. He is known for his work "Prayogamukha," which is a commentary on the Sanskrit grammar text "Ashtadhyayi" by Panini.
Another prominent figure with the name Pota was Pota Raju (1551-1626), a military commander and chieftain who served under the Vijayanagara Empire in present-day Karnataka, India. He played a crucial role in several battles against the Deccan Sultanates and is remembered for his bravery and strategic skills.
In the field of literature, Pota Venkata Krishna Rao (1805-1870) was a renowned Telugu poet and playwright from Andhra Pradesh, India. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of modern Telugu literature and is best known for his works such as "Bhavamanjari" and "Prabodhachandrika."
Moving to more recent times, Pota Satyanarayana (1919-1992) was an Indian politician and freedom fighter who played an active role in the Indian independence movement. He served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and was also a member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament.
Pota Radhakrishna (1933-2010) was a notable Indian classical dancer and choreographer. He was a master of the Kuchipudi dance form and is credited with popularizing and promoting this traditional dance style both within India and internationally.
While the name Pota has its roots in Sanskrit and ancient Indian culture, it has transcended geographical boundaries and has been adopted by various communities across the world, with individuals bearing this name making significant contributions in diverse fields.
People
Pota + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pota as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Pota: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pota?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pota going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Pota a common name?
We classify Pota as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 33 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pota most popular?
The single biggest year for Pota was 1918, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pota is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Pota a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pota in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.