Renessa
A feminine name derived from the Latin "renatus," signifying rebirth or renewal.
Name Census estimates that about 178 living Americans carry the first name Renessa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Renessa today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Renessa births was 1979 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Renessa. 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
178
~ 1 in 1,925,586 Americans
Peak year
1979
9 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
1999 SSA rank
#14,025
Tracked since 1963
Popularity
Renessa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Renessa from the 1960s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 71 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Renessa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Renessa 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 Renessa 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 Renessa
The name Renessa is a relatively modern invention, with its origins likely rooted in the French language. It appears to be a combination of the French words "reine" meaning "queen" and "naissance" meaning "birth" or "origin." This suggests that Renessa could be interpreted as "queen of birth" or "regal birth."
While the name itself does not have a documented ancient history, its components can be traced back to the Middle Ages. The word "reine" derives from the Latin word "regina," which was used to refer to a queen or sovereign ruler. The word "naissance" comes from the Latin "nascentia," meaning "being born" or "origin."
There are no known historical figures or recorded individuals from centuries past who bore the name Renessa. However, there are a few notable individuals with this name in more recent times.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Renessa is Renessa Raia, an American actress born in 1977. She has appeared in several television shows and films, including "The Sopranos" and "American Gangster."
Another person named Renessa is Renessa Williams, an American model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was crowned Miss Texas USA in 2010 and later competed in the Miss USA pageant.
Renessa Altrov is a Finnish singer and songwriter who gained popularity in the early 2000s with her debut album "Unelmia ja Toiveita" (Dreams and Wishes).
In the world of sports, there is Renessa Wickham, a former track and field athlete from the Bahamas. She competed in the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, specializing in the 400-meter hurdles.
Finally, Renessa Walker is a British author and journalist who has written several books on parenting and family life, including "The Mother's Guide to Sanity" and "The Busy Parent's Guide to Stress-Free Living."
While the name Renessa is relatively new and does not have a long historical lineage, it has gained some popularity in recent decades, particularly in English-speaking countries. Its meaning and composition suggest a connection to concepts of royalty, birth, and origins.
People
Renessa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Renessa 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
Renessa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Renessa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 178 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Renessa 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 1,925,586 US residents.
Is Renessa a common name?
We classify Renessa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 194 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Renessa most popular?
The single biggest year for Renessa was 1979, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Renessa is about 46 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Renessa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Renessa 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.