Sweta
A feminine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "white" or "bright".
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the first name Sweta. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Sweta today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sweta births was 1984 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sweta. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Sweta with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
209
~ 1 in 1,639,973 Americans
Peak year
1984
16 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2005 SSA rank
#16,212
Tracked since 1979
Census
Sweta in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,521 people with the first name Sweta, which placed it at #9,233 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
#9,233
National first-name rank
People counted
1.5K
1,521 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
97.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sweta
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sweta is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.0%. The next largest groups are White (1.8%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Sweta 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 Sweta at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander97.0% · 1,476
- White1.8% · 27
- Black or African American0.7% · 10
- Two or more races0.3% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.1% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Popularity
Sweta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sweta from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 86 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Sweta remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sweta 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 Sweta during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Swetas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Sweta
The name Sweta has its origins in Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that served as the foundation for many Indian languages. Sweta is derived from the Sanskrit word "shveta," which means "white" or "bright." This name has been in use in the Indian subcontinent for centuries, particularly in the Hindu community.
In ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, the name Sweta is often associated with purity, radiance, and auspiciousness. It is mentioned in the Vedas, the oldest and most sacred Hindu scriptures, as a descriptor for various deities and sacred entities. The Ramayana, one of the two great ancient Indian epic poems, also references the name Sweta in its verses.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Sweta dates back to the 3rd century BCE, when a renowned Sanskrit grammarian named Sweta Rishi lived during the Maurya Empire. He is credited with authoring several works on grammar and linguistics, which contributed significantly to the development of the Sanskrit language.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the name Sweta. Sweta Chandrasekhar (1835-1904) was a prominent Indian mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of black holes and the theory of relativity. Sweta Naidu (1879-1949) was an Indian political activist and poet who played a crucial role in the Indian independence movement and was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi.
Sweta Sharma (1928-2003) was an acclaimed Indian classical dancer and choreographer, renowned for her performances in the Kathak dance form. Sweta Mukherjee (1939-2021) was a renowned Indian novelist and short story writer who received several prestigious literary awards, including the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Jnanpith Award.
Another notable figure bearing the name Sweta is Sweta Thunberg (born 2003), a Swedish environmental activist known for her advocacy against climate change and her influential speeches and protests, which have inspired millions around the world.
While the name Sweta has its roots in Sanskrit and Hindu tradition, it has transcended cultural boundaries and gained popularity across various regions and communities. Its meaning of purity, radiance, and auspiciousness continues to resonate with many individuals, making it a timeless and cherished name.
People
Sweta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sweta 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
Sweta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sweta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 209 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sweta 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 1,639,973 US residents.
Is Sweta a common name?
We classify Sweta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 217 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sweta most popular?
The single biggest year for Sweta was 1984, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sweta is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sweta in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,521 people with the name Sweta, or 0.50 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,233 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 Sweta 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 Sweta?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sweta appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,520 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Sweta?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sweta is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.0%. The next largest groups are White (1.8%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Sweta most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Sweta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.0% (1,476 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 Sweta in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sweta a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sweta 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 Sweta still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sweta 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 Sweta 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 common is the name Sweta?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.