Suliana
A feminine name of uncertain origin potentially meaning "flower" or "blossom".
Name Census estimates that about 33 living Americans carry the first name Suliana. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Suliana today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Suliana births was 2004 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Suliana. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Suliana. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
33
~ 1 in 10,386,495 Americans
Peak year
2004
7 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2015 SSA rank
#16,202
Tracked since 1979
Census
Suliana in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 156 people with the first name Suliana, which placed it at #44,397 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#44,397
National first-name rank
People counted
156
156 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
46.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Suliana
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Suliana is Hispanic at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (43.6%) and Two or More Races (5.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Suliana described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Suliana at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino46.2% · 72
- Asian and Pacific Islander43.6% · 68
- Two or more races5.8% · 9
- White3.2% · 5
- Black or African American1.3% · 2
Popularity
Suliana: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Suliana from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 22 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Suliana 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 Suliana 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 Suliana
The name Suliana has its origins in the Polynesian languages, particularly Samoan and Tongan. It is believed to have emerged around the 15th century during the height of the Polynesian maritime exploration and settlement of the Pacific islands.
Suliana is a combination of two words in the Samoan and Tongan languages. The first part, "Suli," means "to follow" or "to pursue," while "ana" is a possessive particle that indicates belonging or ownership. Thus, the name Suliana can be interpreted as "one who follows" or "one who pursues."
In the ancient Polynesian cultures, names often held significant meaning and were carefully chosen to reflect the desired qualities or aspirations for a child. The name Suliana may have been given to infants with the hope that they would grow up to be determined, persevering, and relentless in their pursuits.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Suliana can be found in the oral histories and genealogies of the Samoan and Tongan royal families. Suliana Malupo, born in the late 16th century, was a prominent chieftain and navigator in the Samoan islands.
During the 18th century, Suliana Laumua, a Tongan princess, played a significant role in the unification of the Tongan islands under the Tu'i Tonga Empire. Her unwavering loyalty and dedication to her people earned her a place in the historical records of the time.
In the 19th century, Suliana Tuimoana, a Samoan chief, was renowned for her expertise in traditional navigation and her leadership during the era of European exploration and colonization in the Pacific.
Another notable figure was Suliana Manu'a, a Samoan artist and cultural ambassador born in 1901, who helped preserve and promote the traditional arts and crafts of her people.
Suliana Logoipulu, born in 1935, was a celebrated Tongan writer and poet, whose works celebrated the rich cultural heritage and traditions of the Polynesian islands.
The name Suliana continues to be popular among Polynesian communities today, serving as a reminder of their rich cultural heritage and the values of determination, perseverance, and a strong sense of belonging.
People
Suliana + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Suliana 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
Suliana: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Suliana?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 33 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Suliana 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 10,386,495 US residents.
Is Suliana a common name?
We classify Suliana as "Very Rare". It ranks above 48% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 34 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Suliana most popular?
The single biggest year for Suliana was 2004, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Suliana is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Suliana in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 156 people with the name Suliana, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,397 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Suliana in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Suliana?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Suliana leans strongly female. 156 people counted with this name were female (98.1%), compared with 3 male bearers (1.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Suliana?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Suliana is Hispanic at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (43.6%) and Two or More Races (5.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Suliana most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Suliana in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.2% (72 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Suliana in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Suliana a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Suliana 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.
Is Suliana still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Suliana in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Suliana can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people share the name Suliana?
You can see how many Americans are named Suliana on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.