Allisha
A feminine name of French origin meaning "noble" or "exalted."
Name Census estimates that about 823 living Americans carry the first name Allisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Allisha today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Allisha births was 1987 (52 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Allisha. 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.
People living today
823
~ 1 in 416,469 Americans
Peak year
1987
52 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2011 SSA rank
#16,919
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Allisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Allisha from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 343 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Allisha 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 Allisha during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Allishas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, Texas, Illinois recorded the most babies named Allisha, while Washington, Ohio, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Allisha
The name Allisha is believed to have originated from the Arabic language, with its roots traced back to the 7th century. It is a feminine form of the name Alish, which means "noble" or "exalted." The name gained popularity in the Middle East and parts of North Africa during the Islamic Golden Age.
In its earliest known usage, the name Allisha appeared in various Arabic literary works and historical records from the medieval period. One of the earliest recorded instances was in a 10th-century poem by the renowned Arabic poet Al-Mutanabbi, where he mentioned a woman named Allisha as a symbol of beauty and grace.
As the Arabic cultural influence spread across regions, the name Allisha also traveled and gained recognition in other parts of the world. In the 12th century, there are records of a prominent female scholar named Allisha Ibn Al-Hafiz, who was renowned for her expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and philosophy.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Allisha. One of the earliest was Allisha Al-Andalusi, a renowned Andalusian poet and scholar who lived in the 11th century and contributed significantly to the literary and intellectual culture of the time.
In the 14th century, Allisha Al-Qurashi was a respected Islamic scholar and theologian from the Qurashi tribe, known for her influential works on Islamic teachings and traditions.
During the Ottoman Empire, Allisha Khanum was a prominent figure in the 16th century, recognized for her patronage of the arts and her influential role in the court of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
Moving forward in time, Allisha Browning was a celebrated American opera singer in the late 19th century, renowned for her powerful vocal performances and her contribution to the operatic arts.
In the 20th century, Allisha Ahmed was a pioneering Pakistani educator and women's rights activist, who played a significant role in promoting education and empowerment for women in her country.
People
Allisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Allisha 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
Allisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Allisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 823 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Allisha 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 416,469 US residents.
Is Allisha a common name?
We classify Allisha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 865 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Allisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Allisha was 1987, when 52 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Allisha is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Allisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Allisha in the SSA data are female. 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.
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.