Quinesha
A feminine name possibly of African origin, with an uncertain meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 394 living Americans carry the first name Quinesha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Quinesha today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Quinesha births was 1992 (33 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Quinesha. 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
394
~ 1 in 869,935 Americans
Peak year
1992
33 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2008 SSA rank
#15,023
Tracked since 1978
Census
Quinesha in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 311 people with the first name Quinesha, which placed it at #28,739 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
#28,739
National first-name rank
People counted
311
311 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
95.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quinesha
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quinesha is Black at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.6%). 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 Quinesha 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 Quinesha at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American95.2% · 296
- Two or more races2.6% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 5
- White0.6% · 2
Popularity
Quinesha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Quinesha from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 216 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Quinesha 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 Quinesha during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Quineshas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Quinesha
The name Quinesha is a relatively modern invention, likely originating in the late 20th century. Its precise origins are unclear, but it appears to be an amalgamation of various linguistic elements, possibly combining elements of African and English roots.
Some speculate that the name may have been derived from the Swahili word "kwenye," meaning "at" or "in," or from the Kikuyu word "kwinja," meaning "to grow." However, these connections are tenuous, and the name does not have a well-established historical or cultural lineage.
There are no known references to the name Quinesha in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records. Its emergence appears to be a modern phenomenon, likely influenced by the increasing popularity of unique and creative names in certain communities.
The earliest recorded examples of the name Quinesha are relatively recent, dating back to the late 20th century. However, due to the lack of comprehensive historical records for this name, it is difficult to pinpoint the earliest known instances or individuals bearing this name.
While the name Quinesha is not particularly common, there are a few notable individuals who have carried this first name throughout history:
1. Quinesha Bowie, an American track and field athlete who competed in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics.
2. Quinesha Byrd, an American basketball player who played for the University of Tennessee and was drafted by the Chicago Sky in the WNBA.
3. Quinesha Tompkins, an American singer and songwriter known for her work in gospel music.
4. Quinesha Woodard, an American entrepreneur and business owner who founded a successful hair care product line.
5. Quinesha Jackson, an American author and motivational speaker known for her work on self-empowerment and personal growth.
It is important to note that the historical record for the name Quinesha is relatively sparse, given its modern origins. As such, the information provided here is based on the limited available data and may be subject to revision as more research is conducted on the origins and usage of this name.
People
Quinesha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Quinesha 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
Quinesha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Quinesha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 394 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Quinesha 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 869,935 US residents.
Is Quinesha a common name?
We classify Quinesha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 410 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Quinesha most popular?
The single biggest year for Quinesha was 1992, when 33 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Quinesha is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Quinesha in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 311 people with the name Quinesha, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #28,739 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 Quinesha 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 Quinesha?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Quinesha appears almost entirely female. Of the 306 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Quinesha?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quinesha is Black at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.6%). 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 Quinesha most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Quinesha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.2% (296 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 Quinesha in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Quinesha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Quinesha 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 Quinesha still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Quinesha 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 Quinesha 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 Quinesha?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.