Zephyra
Feminine name derived from the Greek word "zephyros" meaning west wind.
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the first name Zephyra. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zephyra today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zephyra births was 2022 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zephyra. 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 Zephyra with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
117
~ 1 in 2,929,524 Americans
Peak year
2022
13 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,402
Tracked since 2009
Popularity
Zephyra: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zephyra from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 67 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zephyra remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zephyra 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 Zephyra 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 Zephyra
The name Zephyra is believed to have its origins in ancient Greek mythology. It is derived from the word "Zephyros," which was the name given to the Greek god of the western wind. This gentle, mild breeze was personified as a winged god, and his name is thought to stem from the ancient Greek word "zophos," meaning dusk or the evening.
In Greek mythology, Zephyros was one of the four Anemoi, or wind gods. He was associated with the spring season and was believed to bring warm winds that nurtured new plant growth. The name Zephyra, therefore, likely refers to a woman with a gentle, nurturing, and refreshing spirit, like the mild spring breezes.
The earliest recorded use of the name Zephyra dates back to ancient Greece, where it was used as a feminine form of the god's name. However, it was not a commonly used name during that time period. The name gained more popularity during the Renaissance, when there was a revival of interest in classical Greek and Roman mythology.
One of the earliest recorded historical figures with the name Zephyra was a Greek philosopher and mathematician from the 5th century BC. Zephyra of Syracuse was a disciple of the renowned mathematician Pythagoras and is credited with contributing to the development of early geometric principles.
In the 16th century, there was a notable Italian writer and poet named Zephyra Valvasone, who was born in 1540 and died in 1610. She was a member of the Accademia dei Costanti, a literary academy in Venice, and is remembered for her poetry and writings on the role of women in society.
During the 17th century, Zephyra van der Werken was a Dutch Golden Age painter who lived from 1623 to 1688. She was known for her still life paintings and portraits, and her work is celebrated as part of the Dutch Baroque tradition.
In the realm of literature, Zephyra Ames was an American author and poet who lived from 1836 to 1923. She was a member of the Transcendentalist movement and published several collections of poetry and essays exploring themes of nature, spirituality, and social reform.
More recently, Zephyra Yarnold was a British actress and singer who lived from 1923 to 2005. She had a successful career on the stage and in television, appearing in various productions in London's West End and on popular British TV shows in the mid-20th century.
People
Zephyra + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zephyra as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zephyra: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zephyra?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 117 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zephyra 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 2,929,524 US residents.
Is Zephyra a common name?
We classify Zephyra as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 118 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zephyra most popular?
The single biggest year for Zephyra was 2022, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zephyra is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Zephyra in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zephyra a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zephyra 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 Zephyra still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zephyra 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 Zephyra 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Zephyra?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Zephyra on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.