Bijan
An Iranian masculine name of Persian origin meaning "a champion".
Name Census estimates that about 991 living Americans carry the first name Bijan. It is a predominantly male name (97.2% of registrations). The average person named Bijan today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bijan births was 1991 (71 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bijan. 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 Bijan with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
991
~ 1 in 345,867 Americans
Peak year
1991
71 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,808
Tracked since 1968
Census
Bijan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,946 people with the first name Bijan, which placed it at #7,714 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
#7,714
National first-name rank
People counted
1.9K
1,946 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bijan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Bijan is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (12.0%) and Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Bijan 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 Bijan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.8% · 1,378
- Two or more races12.0% · 234
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 142
- Black or African American6.1% · 118
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 72
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Bijan
Bijan leans heavily male at 97.2% of total registrations, but 29 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Bijan as a male name
- Ranked #7,808 in 2024
- 10 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1991 (65 births)
Bijan as a female name
- Ranked #13,794 in 1996
- 5 female births in 1996
- Peak: 1990 (8 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Bijan leans strongly male. 1,884 people counted with this name were male (96.7%), compared with 65 female bearers (3.3%).
Popularity
Bijan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bijan from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 482 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Bijan 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 Bijan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Bijans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, New York, Florida recorded the most babies named Bijan, while Texas, Florida, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 92 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Bijan
The name Bijan has its origins in the Persian language and culture. It is derived from the ancient Iranian word "Vījan," which means "free from sorrow" or "one who is without sorrow." The name can be traced back to the 11th century, when it was mentioned in the epic Persian poem, Shahnameh, written by the renowned poet Ferdowsi.
Bijan was the name of a legendary hero in the Shahnameh, known for his bravery and valor. He was the son of Girav, a renowned warrior, and played a pivotal role in the story's events. The tale of Bijan and his love for the beautiful Princess Manizhe is considered one of the most romantic narratives in Persian literature.
Throughout history, the name Bijan has been associated with various notable figures. One of the earliest recorded instances was Bijan Ghazi, a Persian military commander who lived in the 11th century. He was known for his military campaigns against the Byzantine Empire and his contribution to the expansion of the Seljuk Empire.
In the 13th century, Bijan Nasavi was a renowned Persian poet and mystic. He was a contemporary of the famous poet Rumi and is celebrated for his spiritual poetry and devotional works.
During the 16th century, Bijan Khatun was a prominent female poet and calligrapher from the Safavid Empire. Her works were highly regarded, and she is considered one of the most influential women in Persian literary history.
In more recent times, Bijan Mofid (1933-2014) was an Iranian poet, writer, and literary critic. He was renowned for his contributions to contemporary Persian literature and his promotion of modern literary movements.
Another notable figure was Bijan Samimi (1941-2020), an Iranian actor and filmmaker who had a prolific career spanning over five decades. He was widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the Iranian cinema industry.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Bijan, reflecting its rich cultural heritage and significance within the Persian tradition.
People
Bijan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bijan 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
Bijan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bijan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 991 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bijan 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 345,867 US residents.
Is Bijan a common name?
We classify Bijan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,019 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bijan most popular?
The single biggest year for Bijan was 1991, when 71 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bijan is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Bijan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,946 people with the name Bijan, or 0.64 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,714 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 Bijan 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 Bijan?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Bijan leans strongly male. 1,884 people counted with this name were male (96.7%), compared with 65 female bearers (3.3%). 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 Bijan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Bijan is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (12.0%) and Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Bijan most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Bijan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.8% (1,378 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 Bijan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Bijan a male name?
Yes, 97.2% of people registered as Bijan 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 Bijan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Bijan 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 Bijan 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 many people have Bijan as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.