Meaning of the nameSelena
- Female
- Greek origin
- Latin origin
- Se-le-na
Selena is a female name linked to the Greek Selene, goddess of the moon, although Wiktionary also allows a Latin origin in Selina.
Meaning
“probably 'moon', from the Greek goddess Selene”
- People (2022)
- 3,546
- Rank in Brazil
- #3,475
- Median age
- 7 years
- 2010 Census
- 1,241
- people
Selena in the 2022 Census
People with the first name Selena, by the decade they were born. In the chart, 70 = the 1970s and 20+ = 2020 to 2022. The largest group was born in 2020 to 2022 (1,283 people).
3,531 women 0 men
Source: IBGE, 2022 Demographic Census, Nomes no Brasil. The census counts the first name of people alive in 2022; small counts are not published, and the first group covers everyone born before 1940. How to read these data.
Where the name Selena is most common
States with the highest share of people named Selena in the population, in the 2022 Census.
- Amazonas 0.004%
- Pará 0.004%
- Espírito Santo 0.003%
- Mato Grosso 0.003%
- Rio Grande do Sul 0.002%
All states
| State | People | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| São Paulo | 550 | 0.001% |
| Minas Gerais | 324 | 0.002% |
| Pará | 288 | 0.004% |
| Rio de Janeiro | 264 | 0.002% |
| Rio Grande do Sul | 245 | 0.002% |
| Paraná | 224 | 0.002% |
| Bahia | 198 | 0.001% |
| Santa Catarina | 169 | 0.002% |
| Maranhão | 156 | 0.002% |
| Amazonas | 153 | 0.004% |
| Pernambuco | 112 | 0.001% |
| Goiás | 106 | 0.002% |
| Espírito Santo | 102 | 0.003% |
| Mato Grosso | 100 | 0.003% |
| Ceará | 91 | 0.001% |
| Mato Grosso do Sul | 67 | 0.002% |
| Distrito Federal | 64 | 0.002% |
| Tocantins | 55 | 0.004% |
| Piauí | 44 | 0.001% |
| Amapá | 38 | 0.005% |
| Roraima | 38 | 0.006% |
| Rondônia | 36 | 0.002% |
| Rio Grande do Norte | 35 | 0.001% |
| Paraíba | 31 | 0.001% |
| Alagoas | 20 | 0.001% |
| Sergipe | 19 | 0.001% |
| Acre | 17 | 0.002% |
States with fewer than 15 people with the name are not shown: IBGE does not publish those counts.
About the name Selena
Behind the Name describes Selena as a Latinized form of Selene, the name of the Greek goddess of the moon, and gives Selene the meaning 'moon'. The English section of Wiktionary records two hypotheses: a variant of Selina, from the Latin Caelina ('heavenly'), or a direct derivation from Selene. For this reason the meaning 'moon' is the most likely, but it is not certain. In the 2022 Census, IBGE recorded 3,546 people named Selena, with a median age of 7, almost all women and most of them born from 2010 on.
Sources
- Behind the Name: Selena · behindthename.com · meaning
- Behind the Name: Selene · behindthename.com · meaning
- Wiktionary: Selena (seção em English) · en.wiktionary.org · origin
Questions about the name Selena
What does the name Selena mean?
Selena means “probably 'moon', from the Greek goddess Selene”, according to Behind the Name.
How many people are named Selena in Brazil?
IBGE's 2022 Census recorded 3,546 people with the first name Selena, which ranks it number 3,475 among the country's names. The largest group was born in 2020 to 2022.
Is Selena a boy's or a girl's name?
Selena is a female name: in the 2022 Census, 3,531 women and 0 men had this name (IBGE does not publish very small counts).
What is the origin of the name Selena?
Selena is a name of Greek and Latin origin. The sources are listed at the end of the page.
In which Brazilian state is Selena most common?
Proportionally, in Amazonas: 0.004% of the state's population is named Selena (153 people), according to the 2022 Census.
More names of Greek origin
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- Helena♀Probably from Greek helene, 'torch'366,186 people
- Sônia♀Russian diminutive form of Sofia, 'wisdom'323,710 people
- Rita♀Short form of Margherita, a name that comes from Greek margarítes,…309,366 people
- Sofia♀Wisdom287,227 people
- Andreia♀Feminine form of André, 'manly, masculine'281,664 people
- Lara♀Russian short form of Larisa, a name possibly taken from the Greek…281,125 people
- Ângela♀Feminine of Ângelo, from Latin angelus, 'angel, messenger'268,995 people
Spotted a mistake? Report a correction for Selena with a source. See the methodology.