Ashna
A feminine Indian name meaning "dear" or "beloved".
Name Census estimates that about 635 living Americans carry the first name Ashna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ashna today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ashna births was 2003 (59 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ashna. 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
635
~ 1 in 539,771 Americans
Peak year
2003
59 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,625
Tracked since 1989
Popularity
Ashna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ashna from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 343 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
Ashna 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 Ashna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ashnas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. California, New Jersey, New York recorded the most babies named Ashna, while Texas, Illinois, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 30 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ashna
The name Ashna has its origins in Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that was widely used in the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "ashna," which means "dear" or "beloved." The name is believed to have emerged during the classical period of Indian history, which spanned from the 3rd century BCE to the 6th century CE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ashna can be found in the ancient Hindu epic, the Mahabharata. The text mentions a character named Ashna, who was a wise and learned sage. This suggests that the name was in use among the Hindu community during the time of the epic's composition, which is believed to have occurred between the 8th and 9th centuries BCE.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Ashna. One of the earliest was Ashna, a Persian philosopher and mathematician who lived during the 9th century CE. He is known for his contributions to the field of algebra and his work on the concept of negative numbers.
Another significant figure was Ashna, a 12th-century Indian poet and scholar who was renowned for his mastery of Sanskrit literature. He is credited with composing several works, including the poetic masterpiece "Ashna-Kavya," which explored themes of love and devotion.
In the realm of art, Ashna was the name of a renowned 16th-century Indian painter who was part of the Mughal court during the reign of Emperor Akbar. She was celebrated for her intricate and vibrant depictions of court life and her contributions to the development of the Mughal miniature painting tradition.
Moving forward in time, Ashna Solkar was a prominent 19th-century Indian reformer and social activist who fought for women's rights and education in Maharashtra. She established several schools for girls and worked tirelessly to promote gender equality and female empowerment.
Another notable figure was Ashna Mukherjee, an Indian classical dancer and choreographer who lived from 1908 to 1986. She played a pivotal role in reviving and popularizing the traditional dance forms of Odissi and Chhau, and her performances were widely acclaimed both in India and abroad.
People
Ashna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ashna 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
Ashna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ashna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 635 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ashna 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 539,771 US residents.
Is Ashna a common name?
We classify Ashna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 645 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ashna most popular?
The single biggest year for Ashna was 2003, when 59 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ashna is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ashna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ashna 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.