Pria
Feminine name with Sanskrit origins related to the word "priya" meaning beloved or dear one.
Name Census estimates that about 413 living Americans carry the first name Pria. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Pria today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pria births was 2014 (25 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pria. 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.
People living today
413
~ 1 in 829,914 Americans
Peak year
2014
25 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,808
Tracked since 1988
Popularity
Pria: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Pria from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 156 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Pria remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Pria 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 Pria during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Pria
The name Pria originates from Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that served as the primary liturgical language of Hinduism. The name can be traced back to the ancient Vedic period in India, dating from around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE. Pria is derived from the Sanskrit word "priya," which means "beloved" or "dear one."
In Hindu mythology, Pria is mentioned as one of the names of the goddess Lakshmi, the consort of Lord Vishnu and the embodiment of beauty, prosperity, and good fortune. The name is often associated with grace, elegance, and femininity in Indian culture.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Pria can be found in the ancient Hindu epic, the Mahabharata, which is believed to have been composed between the 8th and 4th centuries BCE. In the epic, Pria is mentioned as the name of a female character, though details about her role or significance are scarce.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Pria. One such figure is Pria Narendra, a 16th-century Indian poet and mystic who wrote extensively on spiritual themes and the pursuit of enlightenment. Another is Pria Devi, a 17th-century Rajput princess and warrior, renowned for her bravery and skill in battle.
In more recent times, Pria Nair was an acclaimed Indian dancer and choreographer who lived from 1919 to 1995. She was instrumental in popularizing and preserving classical Indian dance forms, particularly Bharatanatyam. Pria Premraj, born in 1954, is a prominent Indian actress and television personality, known for her work in both Hindi and Tamil cinema.
Lastly, Pria Viswalingam is a contemporary Malaysian writer and activist, born in 1965. She is the author of several books exploring themes of identity, diaspora, and social justice, and has been actively involved in promoting human rights and gender equality.
People
Pria + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pria 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
Pria: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pria?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 413 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pria 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 829,914 US residents.
Is Pria a common name?
We classify Pria as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 419 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pria most popular?
The single biggest year for Pria was 2014, when 25 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pria is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Pria a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pria 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.