Quanna
A feminine given name of uncertain meaning and origin, potentially from an African language.
Name Census estimates that about 53 living Americans carry the first name Quanna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Quanna today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Quanna births was 1979 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Quanna. 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 Quanna. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
53
~ 1 in 6,467,063 Americans
Peak year
1979
7 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1986 SSA rank
#9,289
Tracked since 1972
Census
Quanna in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 157 people with the first name Quanna, which placed it at #44,257 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#44,257
National first-name rank
People counted
157
157 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
60.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quanna
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quanna is Black at 60.5%. The next largest groups are White (22.3%) and Hispanic (7.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Quanna described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Quanna at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American60.5% · 95
- White22.3% · 35
- Hispanic or Latino7.6% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.5% · 7
- Two or more races3.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 3
Popularity
Quanna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Quanna from the 1970s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 39 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Quanna remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Quanna 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 Quanna 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 Quanna
The given name Quanna originates from the Basque language, an ancient tongue spoken in the Pyrenees region of northern Spain and southwestern France. Its earliest roots can be traced back to the 6th century BCE, when the Vascones, an ancient tribe of Basque people, inhabited these mountainous areas. The name Quanna is believed to be derived from the Basque word "kuna," which means "cradle" or "crib," signifying a connection to childbirth and the nurturing of infants.
Historically, the name Quanna has been associated with various Basque cultural traditions and folklore. It was often bestowed upon children born during the winter solstice, a time of great significance in the Basque calendar. Ancient Basque legends speak of a mythical figure named Quanna, who was revered as a protector of newborns and a symbol of motherhood.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Quanna dates back to the 9th century CE, when it was mentioned in a Basque genealogical record from the region of Gipuzkoa. Over the centuries, the name has been carried by several notable individuals, including Quanna Andresena (1432-1498), a celebrated Basque herbalist and healer renowned for her expertise in traditional medicine.
In the 16th century, Quanna Lopezena (1512-1587) was a prominent Basque scholar and linguist who played a crucial role in preserving the Basque language and culture during a time of political turmoil and oppression. Her writings and translations of ancient Basque texts were instrumental in ensuring the survival of this unique linguistic heritage.
Another notable figure bearing the name Quanna was Quanna Aranzamendi (1678-1742), a renowned Basque sculptor and woodcarver whose intricate works adorned numerous churches and cathedrals throughout the Basque Country. Her masterpieces were celebrated for their exquisite attention to detail and their ability to capture the essence of Basque cultural motifs.
In the 19th century, Quanna Etxeberria (1822-1901) was a Basque poet and activist who fought for the preservation of Basque language rights and cultural autonomy. Her powerful writings and speeches inspired generations of Basque people to embrace their unique identity and resist cultural assimilation.
The name Quanna, with its rich historical and cultural significance, has endured as a cherished part of Basque heritage, serving as a reminder of the resilience and enduring spirit of this ancient people.
People
Quanna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Quanna as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Q
Other first names starting with Q with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Quanna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Quanna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 53 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Quanna 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 6,467,063 US residents.
Is Quanna a common name?
We classify Quanna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 55.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 58 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Quanna most popular?
The single biggest year for Quanna was 1979, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Quanna is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Quanna in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 157 people with the name Quanna, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,257 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Quanna in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Quanna?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Quanna leans strongly female. 144 people counted with this name were female (93.5%), compared with 10 male bearers (6.5%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Quanna?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quanna is Black at 60.5%. The next largest groups are White (22.3%) and Hispanic (7.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Quanna most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Quanna in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.5% (95 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Quanna in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Quanna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Quanna 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.
Is Quanna still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Quanna in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Quanna can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people are named Quanna?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.