Wenona
Name of unclear Native American origin, possibly meaning "daughter".
Name Census estimates that about 638 living Americans carry the first name Wenona. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Wenona today is around 56 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wenona births was 1975 (52 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wenona. 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
638
~ 1 in 537,233 Americans
Peak year
1975
52 babies that year
Average age
56
years old
2023 SSA rank
#17,452
Tracked since 1907
Census
Wenona in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 705 people with the first name Wenona, which placed it at #16,105 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
#16,105
National first-name rank
People counted
705
705 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
48.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wenona
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wenona is White at 48.5%. The next largest groups are Black (25.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (10.4%). 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 Wenona 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 Wenona at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White48.5% · 342
- Black or African American25.0% · 176
- American Indian and Alaska Native10.4% · 73
- Two or more races9.4% · 66
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.5% · 25
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 23
Popularity
Wenona: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wenona from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 391 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Wenona 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 Wenona during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Wenonas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. California, North Carolina, Oklahoma recorded the most babies named Wenona, while Texas, Ohio, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Wenona
The name Wenona is believed to have originated from the Native American Potawatomi language. It first appeared in the early 19th century and is thought to be derived from the word "winona," which means "first-born daughter" or "eldest daughter."
The name gained popularity in the United States, particularly in the Midwestern states where the Potawatomi people resided. It was often given to firstborn daughters as a way to honor their cultural heritage and significance within the family.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Wenona dates back to 1832, when a Potawatomi woman named Wenona was mentioned in a historical account of the Black Hawk War. This conflict between Native American tribes and the United States took place in the present-day states of Illinois and Wisconsin.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who have borne the name Wenona. One of the most famous was Wenona Wilkins (1886-1981), an American artist and sculptor known for her work in the Art Deco style. Her sculptures can be found in various public spaces across the United States.
Another notable Wenona was Wenona Gilman (1888-1976), an American actress and vaudeville performer who appeared in several Broadway productions and silent films in the early 20th century.
In the realm of literature, Wenona Gaylord (1903-1993) was an American author and poet who wrote several books about her experiences growing up in the Midwest. Her works often explored themes of nature, spirituality, and Native American culture.
The name Wenona also has historical ties to the state of Illinois, where a small town was named after a legendary Native American woman of the same name. The town of Wenona, Illinois, was established in 1854 and still exists today.
Additionally, Wenona Dunn (1924-2014) was an American artist and educator who played a significant role in promoting Native American art and culture. She was a member of the Sac and Fox Nation and dedicated her life to preserving and sharing the artistic traditions of her people.
People
Wenona + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wenona as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wenona: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wenona?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 638 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wenona 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 537,233 US residents.
Is Wenona a common name?
We classify Wenona as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,168 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wenona most popular?
The single biggest year for Wenona was 1975, when 52 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wenona is about 56 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Wenona in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 705 people with the name Wenona, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,105 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 Wenona 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 Wenona?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wenona appears almost entirely female. Of the 696 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Wenona?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wenona is White at 48.5%. The next largest groups are Black (25.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (10.4%). 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 Wenona most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Wenona in the 2020 Census, accounting for 48.5% (342 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 Wenona in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wenona a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wenona 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 Wenona still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wenona 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 Wenona 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 are called Wenona?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.