Rada
Of Ukrainian origin, meaning "joyful" or "full of joy".
Name Census estimates that about 151 living Americans carry the first name Rada. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rada today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rada births was 1921 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rada. 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
151
~ 1 in 2,269,896 Americans
Peak year
1921
15 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
2024 SSA rank
#14,824
Tracked since 1893
Popularity
Rada: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rada from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 93 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Rada remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rada 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 Rada 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 Rada
Rada is a feminine given name with origins tracing back to the Slavic languages. It is believed to be derived from the Old Slavic word "rad," meaning "joy" or "gladness." The name was particularly popular among the medieval Slavic communities in Central and Eastern Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rada can be found in the 12th-century Velestino Inscription, a medieval Slavic text discovered in modern-day Greece. This inscription suggests that the name was already in use among Slavic populations in the Balkans during that period.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Rada Crnojević was the daughter of the Serbian ruler Vukašin Mrnjavčević and the wife of the Ottoman-appointed ruler of Zeta, Đurađ Balšić. Her name appeared in various historical records and chronicles from that era.
Another historical figure bearing the name Rada was Rada Nedić (1899-1976), a Serbian painter and one of the pioneers of modern art in her country. Her works are celebrated for their unique blend of traditional Serbian motifs and contemporary artistic styles.
During the 14th century, the name Rada appeared in several religious texts and chronicles in various Slavic regions, further indicating its widespread use among Slavic communities at the time.
In the realm of literature, Rada Polić (1953-2011) was a renowned Croatian poet and writer. Her poetic works explored themes of love, loss, and the human condition, earning her critical acclaim and numerous literary awards.
Rada Gorbačova (1953-2010) was a prominent Russian human rights activist and journalist. She played a significant role in advocating for freedom of speech and civil liberties in the Soviet Union and later in Russia.
While the name Rada has roots in the Slavic languages, it has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among communities with Slavic cultural influences or connections. However, its historical origins and earliest recorded usages can be traced back to the medieval Slavic populations of Central and Eastern Europe.
People
Rada + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rada as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rada: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rada?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 151 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rada 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 2,269,896 US residents.
Is Rada a common name?
We classify Rada as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 464 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rada most popular?
The single biggest year for Rada was 1921, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rada is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rada a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rada 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.