Danesh
A masculine name of Persian origin meaning "knowledge" or "wisdom".
Name Census estimates that about 12 living Americans carry the first name Danesh. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Danesh today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Danesh births was 1998 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Danesh. 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 Danesh with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Danesh. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
12
~ 1 in 28,562,862 Americans
Peak year
1998
6 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2001 SSA rank
#9,514
Tracked since 1998
Census
Danesh in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 193 people with the first name Danesh, which placed it at #39,252 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
#39,252
National first-name rank
People counted
193
193 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
50.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Danesh
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Danesh is Asian/Pacific Islander at 50.8%. The next largest groups are White (25.4%) and Two or More Races (11.4%). 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 Danesh 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 Danesh at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander50.8% · 98
- White25.4% · 49
- Two or more races11.4% · 22
- Black or African American8.3% · 16
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 2
Popularity
Danesh: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Danesh from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 6 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
Danesh 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 Danesh during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Danesh
The name Danesh has its roots in the Persian language, originating from the word "danesh," which means "knowledge" or "wisdom." This name's origin can be traced back to the ancient Persian civilization, which flourished in the region now known as modern-day Iran, spanning from around the 6th century BCE to the 7th century CE.
The name Danesh has been prevalent in Persian literature and historical records for centuries. It was particularly popular among scholars, philosophers, and intellectuals who valued knowledge and wisdom. In the 10th century, a famous Persian polymath, Abu Rayhan al-Biruni, who was born in 973 CE, was also known as Danesh-nama, which translates to "the book of knowledge."
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Danesh was Danesh Vajeh, a Persian poet and literary figure who lived in the 11th century. He was renowned for his contributions to Persian poetry and literature. Another notable figure was Danesh Ali Siraj, a Persian scholar and Sufi mystic who lived in the 14th century and wrote extensively on Sufism and spirituality.
In the 16th century, Danesh Masih, a Persian scholar and linguist, gained recognition for his work on the Persian language and his translations of various texts. Additionally, Danesh Ardeshir, a Persian nobleman and military commander, played a significant role in the Safavid dynasty during the same period.
During the 19th century, Danesh Irani, an influential Persian writer and journalist, made significant contributions to the Persian literary scene. He was a prominent figure in the Iranian intellectual community and played a crucial role in the spread of modern ideas and reforms.
Throughout history, the name Danesh has been associated with knowledge, wisdom, and intellectual pursuits, reflecting the cultural significance of these values in Persian society. While its usage may have fluctuated over time, the name has remained a cherished part of the Persian heritage, serving as a reminder of the importance placed on learning and scholarly achievements.
People
Danesh + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Danesh as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Danesh: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Danesh?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Danesh 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 28,562,862 US residents.
Is Danesh a common name?
We classify Danesh as "Very Rare". It ranks above 32.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 12 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Danesh most popular?
The single biggest year for Danesh was 1998, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Danesh is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Danesh in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 193 people with the name Danesh, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #39,252 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 Danesh 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 Danesh?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Danesh leans strongly male. 190 people counted with this name were male (95.5%), compared with 9 female bearers (4.5%). 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 Danesh?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Danesh is Asian/Pacific Islander at 50.8%. The next largest groups are White (25.4%) and Two or More Races (11.4%). 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 Danesh most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Danesh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.8% (98 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 Danesh in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Danesh a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Danesh 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 Danesh still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Danesh 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 Danesh 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 Americans are named Danesh?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Danesh at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.