Dharma
A Sanskrit name meaning divine law, ethics, duty, or righteousness.
Name Census estimates that about 628 living Americans carry the first name Dharma. It is a predominantly female name (96.6% of registrations). The average person named Dharma today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dharma births was 1998 (68 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dharma. 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
628
~ 1 in 545,787 Americans
Peak year
1998
68 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2023 SSA rank
#8,414
Tracked since 1969
Gender
Gender distribution for Dharma
Dharma leans heavily female at 96.6% of total registrations, but 22 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Dharma as a male name
- Ranked #8,414 in 2023
- 9 male births in 2023
- Peak: 2023 (9 births)
Dharma as a female name
- Ranked #12,463 in 2023
- 7 female births in 2023
- Peak: 1998 (68 births)
Popularity
Dharma: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dharma from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 330 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
Dharma 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 Dharma during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dharmas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Dharma, while Indiana, Florida, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 23 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dharma
The name Dharma has its origins in the Sanskrit language, one of the oldest languages in the world, dating back to the second millennium BCE. It is a prominent name in Indian culture and Hinduism, where it holds deep religious and philosophical significance.
The word "Dharma" is derived from the Sanskrit root "dhri," which means to uphold, sustain, or support. It is a complex concept in Hinduism, encompassing cosmic order, righteousness, duty, and the ethical principles that govern the universe and human conduct.
Dharma is a central concept in the ancient Hindu scriptures, such as the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Bhagavad Gita. It is often personified as a cosmic force that upholds the natural order and the moral fabric of society. The concept of Dharma is deeply intertwined with the ideas of karma, reincarnation, and the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment.
One of the earliest recorded references to Dharma can be found in the Rigveda, one of the oldest and most revered texts in Hinduism, composed between 1500 and 1000 BCE. The name Dharma is also mentioned in the Mahabharata, a renowned Indian epic that dates back to the 8th or 9th century BCE.
Throughout history, there have been several notable figures who bore the name Dharma:
1. Dharma Raja (c. 550 BCE - 480 BCE), a legendary king in ancient India known for his exceptional commitment to justice and righteousness.
2. Dharma Shastri (c. 700 CE - 780 CE), a renowned Indian scholar and author who wrote extensively on the principles of Dharma and its application in daily life.
3. Dharma Vira (1765 - 1846), an Indian revolutionary who fought against the British East India Company and advocated for the rights of the oppressed.
4. Dharma Thakor (1865 - 1933), a prominent Indian social reformer and educator who worked towards the upliftment of women and the underprivileged.
5. Dharma Raj Ghale (1964 - present), a Nepali environmentalist and activist known for his efforts in preserving the Himalayan ecosystems.
The name Dharma continues to hold significant cultural and spiritual importance in various regions of South Asia, particularly in Hinduism and Buddhism, where it represents the universal principles of righteousness, truth, and the path to enlightenment.
People
Dharma + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dharma 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
Dharma: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dharma?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 628 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dharma 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 545,787 US residents.
Is Dharma a common name?
We classify Dharma 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, 640 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dharma most popular?
The single biggest year for Dharma was 1998, when 68 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dharma is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Dharma a female name?
Yes, 96.6% of people registered as Dharma 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.