Aakash
A Sanskrit masculine name meaning "sky" or "heavens".
Name Census estimates that about 1,023 living Americans carry the first name Aakash. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Aakash today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Aakash births was 2002 (49 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Aakash. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Aakash with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.0K
~ 1 in 335,048 Americans
Peak year
2002
49 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,443
Tracked since 1979
Census
Aakash in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,561 people with the first name Aakash, which placed it at #9,070 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#9,070
National first-name rank
People counted
1.6K
1,561 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
93.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Aakash
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Aakash is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Aakash described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Aakash at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander93.0% · 1,451
- White2.6% · 40
- Two or more races2.5% · 39
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 18
- Black or African American0.4% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 6
Popularity
Aakash: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Aakash from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 348 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aakash by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Aakash during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Aakashs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, New Jersey, Texas recorded the most babies named Aakash, while Michigan, Georgia, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 42 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Aakash
The name Aakash has its origins in the Sanskrit language, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that has been a prominent cultural force in the Indian subcontinent for over three millennia. Derived from the Sanskrit word "ākāśa," meaning "sky" or "space," the name carries a profound connection to the vast expanse of the heavens.
In Hinduism, the concept of ākāśa is deeply ingrained, representing one of the five fundamental elements (pancha mahabhuta) that constitute the universe. It is believed to be the subtlest of all elements, encompassing the boundless space that permeates all existence. The name Aakash, by extension, symbolizes the limitless possibilities and endless potential inherent within each individual.
Mentions of the name Aakash can be traced back to ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, such as the Upanishads and the Vedas. These sacred writings often employed the term "ākāśa" to convey the spiritual and cosmic dimensions of existence, further cementing the name's association with the transcendental realm.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Aakash is found in the Mahabharata, the epic Sanskrit narrative that dates back to around the 8th century BCE. In this ancient text, Aakash is mentioned as the name of a sage, highlighting the name's connection to wisdom and spiritual enlightenment.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Aakash. One of the most famous is Aakash Chopra, an Indian cricketer born in 1977, who represented the Indian national team and achieved numerous accolades in his sporting career.
Another prominent figure is Aakash Nihalani, an American artist and fashion designer of Indian descent, born in 1986, known for his innovative and boundary-pushing creations that blend contemporary aesthetics with cultural influences.
In the realm of academia, Aakash Kaushik, an Indian-American computer scientist born in 1983, has made significant contributions to the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning, exemplifying the name's association with intellect and innovation.
Aakash Vani, born in 1968, is a celebrated Indian classical dancer and choreographer, renowned for her mastery of the Kathak dance form and her efforts in preserving and promoting this ancient art form.
Lastly, Aakash Odedra, born in 1986, is a British choreographer and dancer of Indian descent, acclaimed for his unique fusion of contemporary and traditional Indian dance styles, embodying the name's connection to artistic expression and cultural synthesis.
People
Aakash + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Aakash as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Aakash: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Aakash?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,023 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Aakash going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 335,048 US residents.
Is Aakash a common name?
We classify Aakash as "Rare". It ranks above 90.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,040 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Aakash most popular?
The single biggest year for Aakash was 2002, when 49 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Aakash is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Aakash in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,561 people with the name Aakash, or 0.52 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,070 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Aakash in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Aakash?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Aakash appears almost entirely male. Of the 1,562 people counted with this name, 99.8% were male and only a very small share were female. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Aakash?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Aakash is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Aakash most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Aakash in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (1,451 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Aakash in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Aakash a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Aakash in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Aakash still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Aakash in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Aakash can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Aakash?
See how many Americans are named Aakash on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.