Venda
An African feminine name meaning "to love" or "loved one".
Name Census estimates that about 87 living Americans carry the first name Venda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Venda today is around 71 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Venda births was 1959 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Venda. 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
- • The typical person named Venda is about 71 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Vendas were born before 1965.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Venda. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
87
~ 1 in 3,939,705 Americans
Peak year
1959
11 babies that year
Average age
71
years old
1971 SSA rank
#9,601
Tracked since 1920
Popularity
Venda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Venda from the 1920s through to the 1970s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 69 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Venda 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 Venda 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 Venda
The name Venda likely originated from the Venda people, an ethnic group located in the Limpopo province of South Africa and the Vhembe district of Zimbabwe. The Venda language, known as Tshivenda, is a part of the Bantu language family and is closely related to Sesotho and Xitsonga.
The Venda people have a rich cultural heritage dating back several centuries. Their name is believed to come from the word "venda," which means "to trade" or "to barter" in their language. This suggests that the Venda people were known for their skills in trading and commerce in ancient times.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Venda can be found in the writings of Portuguese explorer Diogo de Alcochete, who encountered the Venda people during his travels in the 16th century. He described them as a powerful and influential kingdom in the region.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Venda. One of the earliest was Venda Musinga (c. 1460-1530), a legendary Venda king who is credited with uniting the various Venda clans into a single kingdom. His reign is said to have brought stability and prosperity to the region.
Another notable figure was Venda Ngungunyana (1850-1906), the last emperor of the Gaza Empire in Mozambique. He led a fierce resistance against Portuguese colonial forces before being captured and exiled to the Azores Islands, where he eventually died.
In the modern era, Venda Makhoere (1920-2008) was a respected Venda chief and political leader who played a significant role in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. He was recognized for his efforts to preserve Venda culture and traditions.
Additionally, Venda Neville Alexander (1936-2012) was a renowned South African academic, writer, and activist who championed multilingualism and advocated for the recognition of African languages in education and public life.
Lastly, Venda Tshilidzi Marwala (born 1971) is a prominent South African engineer, academic, and author. He has made significant contributions to the field of artificial intelligence and has served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg since 2018.
While the name Venda may have ancient roots, it continues to be a cherished name among the Venda people, serving as a reminder of their rich cultural heritage and resilience in the face of adversity.
People
Venda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Venda 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
Venda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Venda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 87 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Venda 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 3,939,705 US residents.
Is Venda a common name?
We classify Venda as "Very Rare". It ranks above 62.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 152 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Venda most popular?
The single biggest year for Venda was 1959, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Venda is about 71 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Venda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Venda 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.