NameCensus.
Very Rare

Bakhari

A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "one who delivers messages".

Name Census estimates that about 13 living Americans carry the first name Bakhari. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Bakhari today is around 3 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bakhari births was 2023 (8 babies).

This page is the full Name Census profile for Bakhari. 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.

Key insights

  • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Bakhari. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.

People living today

13

~ 1 in 26,365,718 Americans

Peak year

2023

8 babies that year

Average age

3

years old

2024 SSA rank

#12,517

Tracked since 2023

Popularity

Bakhari: popularity over time

Babies born per year

02468

Decades

Bakhari 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 Bakhari during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.

DecadeMaleFemaleTotal
2020s13013

Origin

Meaning and history of Bakhari

The name Bakhari is believed to have its origins in the Arabic language. It is derived from the Arabic word "bakhur," which means "incense" or "fragrance." The name likely originated in the Middle East during the early Islamic period, around the 7th century CE.

Bakhari was a relatively uncommon name in ancient times, but it did appear in some historical records and texts. One of the earliest documented instances of the name can be found in the writings of Abu Bakr al-Khallal, a prominent Islamic scholar who lived in the 9th century CE. He mentioned a person named Bakhari in one of his works, indicating that the name was in use during that time period.

The name Bakhari may also have been influenced by the name of the famous Islamic scholar, Muhammad al-Bukhari (810-870 CE), who is known for compiling one of the most authoritative collections of hadith (sayings and traditions of the Prophet Muhammad). While the names are spelled differently, the similarity in sound and meaning may have contributed to the popularity of the name Bakhari among Islamic communities.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Bakhari was Bakhari ibn al-Husayn (865-935 CE), a renowned Arabic poet and writer who lived in Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate. His works were highly influential and contributed to the development of Arabic literature.

Another notable figure with the name Bakhari was Bakhari al-Dimashqi (1059-1123 CE), a Syrian historian and geographer who wrote extensively about the history and geography of the Islamic world during the medieval period.

In the 12th century, Bakhari al-Qayrawani (1107-1173 CE) was a prominent Islamic scholar and jurist from present-day Tunisia. He made significant contributions to the field of Islamic jurisprudence and is remembered for his writings on the Maliki school of Islamic law.

During the 13th century, Bakhari al-Mawsili (1213-1285 CE) was a renowned Arabic calligrapher and poet from Mosul, Iraq. His calligraphic works were highly acclaimed and are considered masterpieces of Arabic calligraphy.

In the 14th century, Bakhari al-Hasani (1335-1397 CE) was a Moroccan scholar and mystic who played a significant role in the spread of Sufism (Islamic mysticism) in North Africa.

These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Bakhari. While not an extremely common name, it has been used across various regions of the Islamic world and has been associated with scholars, writers, and religious figures, reflecting its rich cultural heritage and meaning related to fragrance and incense.

People

Bakhari + last name combinations

How many people share a full name with Bakhari as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.

Related

Other names starting with B

Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.

FAQ

Bakhari: questions and answers

How many people in the U.S. are named Bakhari?

Name Census puts the figure at roughly 13 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bakhari 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 26,365,718 US residents.

Is Bakhari a common name?

We classify Bakhari as "Very Rare". It ranks above 33.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 13 babies have been registered with this name.

When was Bakhari most popular?

The single biggest year for Bakhari was 2023, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bakhari is about 3 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 Bakhari in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.

Is Bakhari a male name?

Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Bakhari 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 Bakhari still being used today?

Yes. The SSA still recorded Bakhari 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 Bakhari 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 common is the name Bakhari?

For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.

N
Name Census
namecensus.com

There are 13 people

with the first name

Bakhari

Look up any American name

Share this result