Saudia
A feminine Arabic name meaning "from Saudi Arabia".
Name Census estimates that about 392 living Americans carry the first name Saudia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Saudia today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Saudia births was 1991 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Saudia. 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
392
~ 1 in 874,373 Americans
Peak year
1991
16 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2017 SSA rank
#18,017
Tracked since 1961
Popularity
Saudia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Saudia from the 1960s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 98 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Saudia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Saudia 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 Saudia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Saudias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Saudia
The name Saudia is believed to have originated from the Arabic word 'سعودي' (Sa'udi), which means 'Saudi Arabian'. It is a modern name that gained popularity in the 20th century, particularly after the establishment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932.
The name is closely associated with the Saudi royal family, the House of Saud, which has ruled over the Arabian Peninsula since the 18th century. It is likely that the name Saudia was derived from the family name 'Al Saud' to reflect the national identity and pride of the Saudi people.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Saudia was in the mid-20th century. Saudia bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (1920-2008) was a member of the Saudi royal family and the daughter of King Abdulaziz Al Saud, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia.
Another notable figure with the name Saudia was Saudia Luttrell (1940-2008), an American film actress and model who appeared in several movies and television shows in the 1960s and 1970s.
In the world of sports, Saudia Roundtree (born 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA for several teams, including the Seattle Storm and the Chicago Sky.
Saudia Young (born 1975) is an American singer and songwriter who has collaborated with various artists in the gospel and contemporary Christian music genres.
Saudia Shakir (born 1977) is an American writer and poet who has published several collections of poetry and essays, exploring themes of identity, race, and gender.
While the name Saudia is predominantly associated with the Middle Eastern and Arabic culture, it has gained some popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among those with connections to Saudi Arabia or the Gulf region.
People
Saudia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Saudia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Saudia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Saudia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 392 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Saudia 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 874,373 US residents.
Is Saudia a common name?
We classify Saudia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 421 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Saudia most popular?
The single biggest year for Saudia was 1991, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Saudia is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Saudia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Saudia 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.