Asai
A Japanese name meaning "born from Asia's morning".
Name Census estimates that about 266 living Americans carry the first name Asai. It is a predominantly male name (95.5% of registrations). The average person named Asai today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Asai births was 2022 (49 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Asai. 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
266
~ 1 in 1,288,550 Americans
Peak year
2022
49 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,390
Tracked since 2012
Gender
Gender distribution for Asai
Asai leans heavily male at 95.5% of total registrations, but 12 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Asai as a male name
- Ranked #3,390 in 2024
- 34 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (44 births)
Asai as a female name
- Ranked #13,620 in 2024
- 6 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (6 births)
Popularity
Asai: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Asai from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 194 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Asai 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 Asai during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Asais live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, California recorded the most babies named Asai, while New York, Florida, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 19 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Asai
The name Asai is believed to have originated from the Japanese language, with its roots dating back to the 8th century AD. In Japanese culture, the name is often associated with the concept of "morning praise" or "morning glory," reflecting the beauty and vibrancy of a new day's dawn.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name can be found in the ancient Japanese literary work, the Man'yoshu, a collection of poetry from the Nara period (710-794 AD). Here, the name Asai was used to describe the radiant hues of the morning sky, revealing its connection to the natural world and the appreciation of nature's beauty.
Throughout Japanese history, several notable figures have borne the name Asai. Among them is Asai Nagamasa (1545-1611), a powerful daimyo (feudal lord) during the Sengoku period. He was known for his military prowess and his role in the Battle of Sekigahara, one of the most significant conflicts that shaped the course of Japanese history.
Another prominent figure was Asai Ryoi (1612-1691), a renowned Zen Buddhist monk and poet. His works, which often explored the themes of impermanence and the interconnectedness of all things, have left a lasting impact on Japanese literature and philosophy.
In the realm of arts and culture, Asai Chu (1856-1907) was a celebrated painter and printmaker during the Meiji era. His woodblock prints, depicting scenes from everyday life and traditional Japanese landscapes, have become iconic representations of the ukiyo-e art form.
Moving into the modern era, Asai Heigo (1909-1981) was a prominent Japanese sculptor known for his abstract and avant-garde works. His pieces, often crafted from stone and metal, challenged traditional notions of form and space, earning him recognition both nationally and internationally.
It is worth noting that while the name Asai has its roots in Japanese culture, it has also been adopted and used in various other contexts and cultures over time, reflecting the global connections and influences that have shaped the world.
People
Asai + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Asai 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
Asai: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Asai?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 266 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Asai 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 1,288,550 US residents.
Is Asai a common name?
We classify Asai as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 268 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Asai most popular?
The single biggest year for Asai was 2022, when 49 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Asai is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Asai in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Asai a male name?
Yes, 95.5% of people registered as Asai 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 Asai still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Asai 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 Asai 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Asai?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.