Shawnette
A feminine variant of the English name Sean or Shawn, meaning "God is gracious".
Name Census estimates that about 674 living Americans carry the first name Shawnette. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Shawnette today is around 50 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shawnette births was 1976 (56 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shawnette. 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
674
~ 1 in 508,538 Americans
Peak year
1976
56 babies that year
Average age
50
years old
2001 SSA rank
#17,543
Tracked since 1957
Popularity
Shawnette: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shawnette from the 1950s through to the 2000s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 391 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shawnette 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 Shawnette during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shawnettes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, Texas, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Shawnette, while Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shawnette
The name Shawnette is a relatively modern feminine form of the male given name Shawn, which itself is an anglicized version of the Irish name Seán. Seán is derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious".
The earliest recorded use of the name Shawnette dates back to the late 19th century in the United States. It is believed to have originated as a more feminine variation of Shawn, following the trend of adding the diminutive suffix "-ette" to create feminine versions of traditionally masculine names.
While the name Shawnette does not have any direct historical references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its roots can be traced back to the biblical name John, which is the English form of the Hebrew Yochanan. The name John has been widely used throughout history and has been borne by numerous notable figures, including John the Baptist and several popes and kings.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Shawnette was in the 1880 United States Census, where a few individuals were listed with this name. However, it did not gain widespread popularity until the 20th century.
Notable individuals named Shawnette throughout history include:
1. Shawnette Sulker (born 1954), an American actress known for her roles in television shows like "The Waltons" and "Lou Grant".
2. Shawnette Renee Wilson (born 1969), an American actress and comedian best known for her role as Niecy Patterson on the sitcom "The Parkers".
3. Shawnette Renée Smith (born 1977), an American model and actress who has appeared in music videos and films.
4. Shawnette Rochelle (born 1979), an American professional wrestler better known by her ring name, Shawnee.
5. Shawnette Sadler (born 1985), an American singer and songwriter who has released several independent albums.
While not as common as some other feminine names, Shawnette has maintained a consistent presence throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, particularly in the United States. Its unique spelling and Irish-Hebrew origins contribute to its distinctiveness as a given name.
People
Shawnette + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shawnette 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
Shawnette: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shawnette?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 674 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shawnette 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 508,538 US residents.
Is Shawnette a common name?
We classify Shawnette as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 750 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shawnette most popular?
The single biggest year for Shawnette was 1976, when 56 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shawnette is about 50 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Shawnette a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shawnette 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.