How Many People Are Named Mahalia Johnson?

There are approximately 12 people named Mahalia Johnson living in the United States today. That makes this name combination rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 28,562,862 Americans.

This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Mahalia with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Johnson. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census background data where it is available.

Estimated People with This Name

1 in 28,562,862 Americans

Combination Rarity

Rare

Very Rare Very Common

First Name

Mahalia

Last Name

Johnson

Est. Bearers 2,130,885

Census Rank #2

Per 100K 621.69

Rarity Very Common

Mahalia: Popularity Over Time

Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Mahalia. The peak year was 2020 with 65 births. The average person named Mahalia today is 27 years old.

Ancestry of the First Name Mahalia

These percentages describe the people who had the first name Mahalia in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper origin or meaning of the name itself.

Read this as a snapshot of who already had the name in 2020, not as a trend line. The SSA chart above is still the better way to see how Mahalia rose or fell over time.

White

18.44%

Black

52.17%

Hispanic

9.13%

Asian/Pacific Islander

5.62%

American Indian/Alaska Native

1.81%

Two or More Races

12.82%

Ancestry of the Johnson Surname

The surname Johnson was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White in the 2020 Census.

This is a self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people who had the surname Johnson in the published Census surname tables. It gives useful context around who was recorded with the name, but it does not tell the full family history of every Boone line.

White

56.79%

Black

33.56%

Hispanic

3.34%

Asian/Pacific Islander

0.71%

American Indian/Alaska Native

0.88%

Two or More Races

4.72%

How we calculated this

The first name "Mahalia" has an estimated frequency of < 0.0001% among living Americans, based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024 adjusted for mortality using CDC 2023 life tables.

The surname "Johnson" appears at a rate of 621.69 per 100,000 people in the 2020 U.S. Census.

We do not use the Census first-name snapshot for the main estimate because it is only published once every 10 years. The latest public first-name Census file is from 2020, which is already 6 years old. SSA birth records plus CDC survival data give a better current estimate of how many people with the first name Mahalia are likely to be alive now.

Multiplying these frequencies against the U.S. population of ~343 million gives 12 estimated people. This assumes first names and last names are statistically independent. Full methodology.

Other people named Mahalia

Mahalia Smith Mahalia Williams Mahalia Jones Mahalia Brown Mahalia Garcia

Other people with the surname Johnson

Michael Johnson James Johnson John Johnson David Johnson Robert Johnson William Johnson Christopher Johnson Joseph Johnson

Mahalia Johnson: Questions and Answers

How many people are named Mahalia Johnson?

We estimate approximately 12 people named Mahalia Johnson are alive in the United States today. The first name Mahalia is shared by 1,876 Americans, and the surname Johnson is shared by 2,130,885.

How rare is the name Mahalia Johnson?

This name combination is classified as Rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 28,562,862 Americans. The first name Mahalia is rare and the surname Johnson is very common.

Is Mahalia a male or female name?

Mahalia is predominantly female, with 0.0% of bearers being male and 100.0% female. It peaked in popularity in 2020 and the average bearer today is 27 years old.

What does the Census say about the first name Mahalia?

In the 2020 Census, the first name Mahalia was most commonly recorded among people who identified as Black (52.17%). The next largest recorded groups were White (18.44%) and Two or More Races (12.82%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper origin of the name itself.

Where does this data come from?

First name data comes from the Social Security Administration (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables. When available, first-name Census background data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau first-name tables. Surname data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau. Full methodology.

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