Sequoia
Feminine
Sequoia is given to both — 3,941 girls and 491 boys since 1880. See other names given to both
Sequoia is named for Sequoyah, the Cherokee silversmith who invented a writing system for his language single-handed, without being literate in any other.
How old is the name Sequoia?
Sequoia first appears in US birth records in 1958 — 67 years ago. The typical Sequoia alive today was born around 2003, making them about 22 years old. About 3,900 people named Sequoia are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Sequoia most popular?
Sequoia peaked in 2002, reaching #1144 nationally. Today it ranks #1981, 837 places below that high. See the whole 2002 chart.
Sequoia appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From Sikwayi to Sequoia
The story of Sequoia
Sequoyah spent twelve years devising a syllabary of eighty-six characters for Cherokee and completed it around 1821; within a few years much of the nation was literate, and a Cherokee newspaper was printing by 1828. It is the only known case of an individual non-literate person inventing a writing system. The name is in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
The genus was named in 1847, generally held to honor Sequoyah, though the botanist Endlicher left no note saying so and a Latin derivation from sequi, 'to follow', has been proposed. Sequoyah's own Cherokee name Sikwayi is of unrecovered meaning. Nothing is fully settled.
How the name formed
- Sikwayi
- Sequoyah
- Sequoia
Related forms: ᏍᏏᏉᏯ · Sequoyah
Pronouncing Sequoia
sih-KWOY-uh
Three syllables, stress in the middle. Cherokee Sikwayi is closer to see-kwah-YEE.
Nicknames for Sequoia
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1958
- Most girls named
- 2002181 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1144reached in 2002
- Change vs 2024
- +26.0%97 in 2025, from 77
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Sequoia in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- ᏍᏏᏉᏯ in Cherokee — transliteration
- Sequoyah in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Oregon, Washington.
Sequoias among us
people named Sequoia are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 16,570 born in 2025 was named Sequoia
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Yashica test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Sequoia's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Yashica climbed just as high around 1979, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Yashica's path sketches the road Sequoia is walking now.
Sequoia sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Sequoia is headed
Sequoia should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Sequoia beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Sequoia in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Sequoyah's achievement is genuinely unique in the history of writing.
- The trees named for him are the largest living things on earth.
- Three syllables with a strong middle, a rhythm that carries well.
- Whether the genus was really named for him is not documented by its namer.
- It is the name of a living people's hero, which some families will weigh.
- The tree association is total for most Americans.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Sequoia to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Sequoia
Feminine · #1981 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Sequoias are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,900 people named Sequoia are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Sequoia in 2025?
- Sequoia ranks #1981 among US girl names in 2025, with 97 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Sequoia?
- About 1 in every 16,570 US girls born in 2025 was named Sequoia — 97 in all.
- Will my child share the name Sequoia with classmates?
- Sequoia will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Sequoia
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Reva#1981 · Shanaya#1981 · Melinda#1981 · Elana#1981 · Elisheva#1981 · Charity#1981 · Janyla#1981 · Theia#1981
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Sequoia? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Sequoia and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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