Vida
A feminine name of Spanish origin meaning "life".
Name Census estimates that about 5,589 living Americans carry the first name Vida. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Vida today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Vida births was 2022 (277 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Vida. 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
5.6K
~ 1 in 61,327 Americans
Peak year
2022
277 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
1975 SSA rank
#1,023
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Vida
Out of the 12,285 babies given the name Vida since 1880, 99.7% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Vida as a male name
- Ranked #6,307 in 1975
- 5 male births in 1975
- Peak: 1972 (15 births)
Vida as a female name
- Ranked #1,023 in 2024
- 246 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (277 births)
Popularity
Vida: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Vida from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 1,812 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Vida remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Vida 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 Vida during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Vidas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 37 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Vida, while Connecticut, Indiana, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 163 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Vida
The name Vida has its origins in the Spanish language, derived from the word "vida," which means "life." It is believed to have been used as a given name since the medieval period in Spain and other Spanish-speaking regions.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Vida can be found in the 13th-century Spanish epic poem "El Cantar de Mio Cid," where a character named Vida appears. This suggests that the name was in use among the Spanish nobility during that time.
In some religious contexts, Vida may have been used as a name to symbolize the gift of life or to honor the divine source of life. However, there is no definitive evidence of its use in religious scriptures or texts.
One notable historical figure named Vida was Vida Dutton Scudder (1861-1954), an American educator, writer, and social reformer who was actively involved in the settlement house movement and advocated for workers' rights.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Vida Goldstein (1869-1949), an Australian pioneer of women's suffrage and a political activist who campaigned tirelessly for women's rights to vote and hold public office.
In the realm of literature, Vida Douglas Scudder (1832-1914) was an American author and educator who wrote extensively on English literature and founded the Froebel Institute in London, promoting early childhood education.
The name Vida was also borne by Vida Jevidze (1886-1986), a Georgian writer and feminist who played a significant role in the women's rights movement in her country and wrote several novels and short stories.
Lastly, Vida Merkulova (1900-1997) was a Russian-born American painter and sculptor who gained recognition for her abstract expressionist works and was part of the vibrant New York art scene in the mid-20th century.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who carried the name Vida throughout history, highlighting its enduring presence across various cultures and time periods.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Vida
People
Vida + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Vida 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
Vida: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Vida?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5,589 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Vida 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 61,327 US residents.
Is Vida a common name?
We classify Vida as "Rare". It ranks above 96.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 12,285 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Vida most popular?
The single biggest year for Vida was 2022, when 277 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Vida is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Vida a female name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Vida 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.