Fun Facts About the Name Nata
- 14 babies named Nata: U.S. records list 14 babies given the name Nata from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Nata Mean?
Nata is best known as a short form of Natalia, a Latin name built on natalis, "of birth," from natus, "born." In Christian Latin, dies natalis meant a birthday, and in Christian usage it referred specifically to the feast of the Nativity, Christmas. Natalia is therefore usually explained as "born on Christmas Day" or "Christmas Day," and the shortened form Nata carries that same meaning.
Nata is also a Georgian given name in its own right, written ნატა. Georgian has a group of familiar short forms of Natalia (ნატალია) - Nato, Nata, Natia, Natuka - and Nata is one of the common ones. Georgia also has a separate name, Natela (ნათელა), from nateli, "light," and Nata can serve as a short form of that name as well, which leaves the Georgian evidence ambiguous.
Sanskrit is an unrelated source. Naṭa (नट) means "dancer" or "actor," from the root naṭ, "to dance," the same root behind the epithet Nataraja, "lord of dance," used for Shiva. The similar-looking Sanskrit nata (नत) instead means "bent" or "bowed." Where Nata appears as a South Asian name, one of these words is a likelier source than the Latin name. The Spanish and Portuguese noun nata, meaning "cream," is not related to the name.
Nata Name History & Origins
Natalia came into Christian naming through Saint Natalia of Nicomedia, a fourth-century martyr venerated together with her husband, Saint Adrian, in both the Eastern Orthodox and Western churches. Her cult spread the name through the Greek-speaking and Slavic worlds, and from the Byzantine sphere into Georgia, where the church calendar supplied a large share of the names still in use. Georgian shortened Natalia into a set of everyday forms - Nato, Nata, Natia, Natuka - that stand on their own as given names rather than serving only as nicknames for a formal full name.
Russian has the parallel full form Natalya (Наталья), shortened in speech to Natasha, Tasha, and Nata. The related Russian form Natasha became widely familiar through literature, most famously through Natasha Rostova in Tolstoy's War and Peace (1869); Nata itself remained chiefly a Russian and Georgian familiar form. Because the Georgian form and the Latin-derived Russian form overlap, a woman named Nata in that part of the world is usually understood as bearing a shortening of Natalia.
Sanskrit naṭa, "dancer, actor," belongs to classical Indian writing on performance and to the vocabulary of dance and drama rather than to the Christian name stock. It survives in devotional names and epithets such as Nataraja. Its link to Nata as a personal name in South Asia is a matter of vocabulary rather than documented naming history, so the two traditions should be kept apart.
How Popular is the Name Nata?
Nata has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1953. Its best rank was #4,146 in 1953.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | #4,146 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1916 | #4,942 | 5 | 0.0005% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Most Popular Girl Names That Start with N
Short Girl Names That Start with N
How the Name Nata Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have a vivid imagination who can bring inspired messages to the world. You like to enjoy the pleasures of life, and when self is overcome, you can rise to the heights. You have an ability to avoid trouble - that is why you often fails to learn from experiences. You are restless, sociable people-oriented, a lover of change, and a seeker of adventure and new thrills. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Nata's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Nata's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.