Zsa
A Hungarian feminine form of the name Zsuzsanna, meaning "lily".
Name Census estimates that about 15 living Americans carry the first name Zsa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zsa today is around 56 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zsa births was 1971 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zsa. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Zsa. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
15
~ 1 in 22,850,289 Americans
Peak year
1971
7 babies that year
Average age
56
years old
1971 SSA rank
#7,386
Tracked since 1967
Popularity
Zsa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zsa from the 1960s through to the 1970s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 12 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zsa 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 Zsa 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 Zsa
The given name Zsa has its origins in Hungarian, a Finno-Ugric language spoken in Hungary and parts of neighboring countries. It is a diminutive form of the Hungarian name Zsófia, which is derived from the Greek name Sophia, meaning "wisdom."
The earliest recorded use of the name Zsa dates back to the late 19th century in Hungary. It gained popularity in the early 20th century, particularly among the Hungarian aristocracy and upper classes. One of the most famous bearers of the name was Zsa Zsa Gabor (1917-2016), a Hungarian-American actress and socialite known for her glamorous lifestyle and numerous marriages.
Another notable figure with the name Zsa was Zsa Zsa Polgar (1914-1987), a Hungarian chess player and the first woman to receive the prestigious Grandmaster title from FIDE, the World Chess Federation. She was a trailblazer in the male-dominated world of professional chess and is widely regarded as one of the greatest female players in history.
In the literary world, Zsa Kodaly (1884-1967) was a Hungarian composer and educator who made significant contributions to music education and the preservation of Hungarian folk music. Her work, including the Kodaly Method for music instruction, has had a lasting impact on music education worldwide.
Another notable figure with the name Zsa was Zsa Zsa Speckert (1921-2009), a Hungarian-American actress and singer who appeared in numerous films and television shows throughout her career. She was also known for her philanthropic work and involvement in various charitable organizations.
Zsa Kardos (1916-2005) was a Hungarian-American mathematician and computer scientist who made important contributions to the fields of computer programming and software engineering. She worked at IBM for over three decades and was instrumental in the development of early programming languages and software tools.
It is worth noting that while the name Zsa has its roots in Hungarian culture, it has been adopted and used in various other countries and cultures over time, particularly in the United States and other parts of the Western world.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Zsa
People
Zsa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zsa 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
Zsa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zsa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zsa 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 22,850,289 US residents.
Is Zsa a common name?
We classify Zsa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 35.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 17 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zsa most popular?
The single biggest year for Zsa was 1971, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zsa is about 56 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Zsa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zsa 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.