Vanita
A feminine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "charming" or "beautiful woman".
Name Census estimates that about 1,234 living Americans carry the first name Vanita. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Vanita today is around 59 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Vanita births was 1971 (53 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Vanita. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 277,759 Americans
Peak year
1971
53 babies that year
Average age
59
years old
2003 SSA rank
#18,298
Tracked since 1913
Popularity
Vanita: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Vanita from the 1910s through to the 2000s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 387 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Vanita 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 Vanita during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Vanitas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 13 states and territories. Texas, Missouri, Ohio recorded the most babies named Vanita, while Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Iowa recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 14 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Vanita
Vanita is a feminine given name with origins tracing back to Sanskrit, an ancient language of India. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "vanita," which means "a woman" or "a lady." It is believed to have been in use as a name since ancient times in the Indian subcontinent.
The name Vanita is closely associated with Hindu mythology and literature. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the ancient Hindu scripture, the Mahabharata, where it is mentioned as the name of a character. Additionally, the name appears in various other Sanskrit texts and literary works throughout the centuries.
Historically, the name Vanita has been particularly popular among Hindu communities in India. One of the earliest known individuals with this name was Vanita Devi, a Hindu saint and mystic who lived in the 16th century. She was known for her devotional poetry and her teachings on spirituality.
Another notable figure with the name Vanita was Vanita Vishram, a prominent Indian social reformer and educator who lived in the 19th century. She played a significant role in promoting education for women and advocating for their rights in colonial India.
In the field of literature, Vanita Redgrave (1937-2022) was a renowned English actress and political activist. She received numerous accolades throughout her career, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe.
Vanita Gupta (born 1974) is an American civil rights lawyer and the current Associate Attorney General of the United States. She has been a vocal advocate for civil rights and has worked to combat discrimination and promote equal justice.
Vanita Shastri (born 1957) is an Indian classical dancer and choreographer. She has been instrumental in preserving and promoting the traditional Indian dance form of Kathak and has received numerous awards and honors for her contributions to the art.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Vanita. The name continues to be popular in various parts of the world, particularly among those with Indian or South Asian heritage, and carries a rich cultural significance rooted in its Sanskrit origins.
People
Vanita + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Vanita as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with V
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Vanita: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Vanita?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,234 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Vanita 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 277,759 US residents.
Is Vanita a common name?
We classify Vanita as "Rare". It ranks above 91.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,056 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Vanita most popular?
The single biggest year for Vanita was 1971, when 53 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Vanita is about 59 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Vanita a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Vanita 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.