Ramaya
An Indian feminine name from Sanskrit meaning "very pleasing to look at".
Name Census estimates that about 249 living Americans carry the first name Ramaya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ramaya today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ramaya births was 2006 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ramaya. 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
249
~ 1 in 1,376,523 Americans
Peak year
2006
21 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,069
Tracked since 1998
Popularity
Ramaya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ramaya from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 107 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Ramaya remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ramaya 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 Ramaya 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 Ramaya
The name Ramaya is believed to have its origins in Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that served as the root for many modern Indian languages. Its earliest recorded use dates back to ancient Hindu texts and scriptures from around the 1st millennium BCE.
The name Ramaya is a variation of the more common Sanskrit name Rama, which is derived from the word "rama," meaning "source of pleasure" or "delightful." The addition of the suffix "-ya" in Ramaya is thought to convey a sense of endearment or affection, making it a diminutive form of Rama.
In Hindu mythology, Rama is the central figure of the epic Ramayana, one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India. The Ramayana narrates the life and adventures of Rama, an avatar of the deity Vishnu, and his quest to rescue his wife Sita from the clutches of the demon king Ravana.
One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the name Ramaya was Ramaya Namboodiri, a renowned Indian mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 14th century CE. He made significant contributions to the field of mathematics, particularly in the areas of trigonometry and calculus.
Another notable figure with the name Ramaya was Ramaya Devi, a Nepali princess and political activist who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. She played a crucial role in the unification of Nepal and is celebrated as a national heroine in the country.
In the 17th century, there was a famous Indian poet and composer named Ramaya Kavi, who wrote extensively in the Telugu language and is credited with popularizing the poetic form known as "dwipadakavitalu" (couplets).
During the 16th century, Ramaya Matya was a prominent Indian artist and sculptor who worked under the patronage of the Vijayanagar Empire. His intricate stone carvings adorned many temples and monuments in the region, showcasing his exceptional talent and skill.
Another notable individual bearing the name Ramaya was Ramaya Pragnarama, a revered Buddhist monk and scholar who lived in the 12th century CE in present-day Myanmar. He was renowned for his teachings and contributions to the preservation and dissemination of Buddhist literature.
People
Ramaya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ramaya 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
Ramaya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ramaya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 249 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ramaya 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 1,376,523 US residents.
Is Ramaya a common name?
We classify Ramaya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 252 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ramaya most popular?
The single biggest year for Ramaya was 2006, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ramaya is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ramaya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ramaya 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.