Yessenia
Yessenia was the 6536th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 18 babies. Its best year was 1990, when it ranked 663rd with 330 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 3,648 places. More babies were named Yessenia in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Yesenia) Origin not documented · Spanish
- Rank in 2025
- #6,536 girls, down 2,372 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 18girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1990330 babies
- Total since 1880
- 7,466babies recorded
What does the name Yessenia mean?
Yessenia is a spelling of Yesenia, pronounced the same way, so it shares Yesenia's meaning and origin.
Yesenia is a modern Spanish name created for fiction. It is the heroine of a Mexican romance comic by Yolanda Vargas Dulché, adapted as a 1970 telenovela and remade in 1987; Spanish Wikipedia dates the comic's use of the title to 1965, while Wiktionary dates the name to the 1970 series. Wiktionary says the name was taken from Jessenia, the botanical name of a South American palm. It has no older meaning as a personal name. In the US Yesenia was most popular in the late 1980s.
Jessenia (Botanical Latin, “genus name of a South American palm (per Wiktionary)”)
How sure is this? Probable. The fictional origin is documented; the derivation from the palm name Jessenia rests on Wiktionary alone.
Related names: Jessenia, Yessenia, Yesena.
See also: Spanish names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Yesenia', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wikipedia (Spanish), 'Yesenia (historieta)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wikipedia, 'Yesenia (1987 TV series)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Yessenia popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 12 since 1988.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #6,536 | 18 |
| 2020 | #4,164 | 34 |
| 2010 | #1,628 | 133 |
| 2000 | #980 | 217 |
| 1990 | #663 | 330 |
| 1980 | #2,095 | 50 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Yessenia, counting every spelling?
Yessenia is a spelling of Yesenia, a name family that ranked #1,528 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #6,536 for Yessenia on its own. Together these spellings went to 121 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yesenia | 103 | #1,901 | 604 |
| Yessenia | 18 | #6,536 | 151 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Yessenia?
18 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Yessenia (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Yessenia born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 465 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Yessenia.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Yessenia?
About 7,300 people born in the US named Yessenia are alive today, with a median age of 29; half are between 22 and 36. That makes Yessenia mostly worn by children and young adults.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Yessenia by state
How common Yessenia was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. In 47 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Yessenia: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Yessenia, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Yessenia
What does Yessenia mean?
The origin of Yesenia is uncertain: the fictional origin is documented; the derivation from the palm name Jessenia rests on Wiktionary alone.
How popular is the name Yessenia?
Yessenia was the 6536th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 18 babies. Its best year was 1990, when it ranked 663rd with 330 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 3,648 places. More babies were named Yessenia in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Is Yessenia a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Yessenia in the US.
Where is Yessenia most popular?
In 2021–2025, Yessenia was most common in California (0.03 per 1,000 girls), followed by Texas and New York.