Dhruv
An Indian masculine name meaning steadfast, resolute, or immovable.
Name Census estimates that about 4,237 living Americans carry the first name Dhruv. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Dhruv today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dhruv births was 2019 (210 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dhruv. 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 Dhruv with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Dhruv is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 14 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
4.2K
~ 1 in 80,896 Americans
Peak year
2019
210 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,088
Tracked since 1987
Census
Dhruv in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 4,606 people with the first name Dhruv, which placed it at #4,166 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
#4,166
National first-name rank
People counted
4.6K
4,606 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
94.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dhruv
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dhruv is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.2%. The next largest groups are White (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Dhruv 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 Dhruv at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander94.2% · 4,340
- White2.5% · 115
- Two or more races1.7% · 77
- Black or African American0.6% · 27
- Hispanic or Latino0.5% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 23
Popularity
Dhruv: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dhruv from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 1,699 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Dhruv remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dhruv 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 Dhruv during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Dhruvs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 20 states and territories. California, New Jersey, Texas recorded the most babies named Dhruv, while Wisconsin, Minnesota, Connecticut recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 158 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Dhruv
The name Dhruv has its origins in the Sanskrit language and ancient Hindu culture. It is derived from the word 'dhruvam' which means 'immovable' or 'constant'. The name has been in use for thousands of years, dating back to ancient Hindu texts and scriptures.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Dhruv can be found in the Vishnu Purana, an ancient Hindu sacred text. It tells the story of Dhruv, the son of King Uttanapad, who became one of the greatest devotees of Lord Vishnu. His unwavering devotion and determination earned him a place among the celestial stars, and he became the Pole Star.
In the 7th century CE, a king named Dhruv Bhatta ruled over parts of present-day Gujarat in western India. He was known for his patronage of the arts and literature, and his reign marked a significant period in the cultural history of the region.
Another notable figure with the name Dhruv was Dhruv Nagari, a 16th-century Indian painter and calligrapher. He was part of the renowned artistic tradition of the Mughal Empire and is renowned for his intricate and beautiful works.
In more recent history, Dhruv Shardha was an Indian freedom fighter who participated in the Indian independence movement against British rule. He was born in 1909 and spent several years in prison for his involvement in the struggle for India's freedom.
Dhruv Vikram, born in 1946, is a contemporary Indian writer and poet. He has published numerous works in Hindi and has been honored with several literary awards for his contributions to Indian literature.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Dhruv. The name has a rich cultural heritage and has been carried by men from various walks of life, including kings, artists, freedom fighters, and writers.
People
Dhruv + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dhruv 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
Dhruv: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dhruv?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4,237 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dhruv 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 80,896 US residents.
Is Dhruv a common name?
We classify Dhruv as "Rare". It ranks above 96.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,279 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dhruv most popular?
The single biggest year for Dhruv was 2019, when 210 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dhruv is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Dhruv in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 4,606 people with the name Dhruv, or 1.53 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #4,166 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 Dhruv 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 Dhruv?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Dhruv appears almost entirely male. Of the 4,611 people counted with this name, 99.8% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Dhruv?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Dhruv is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.2%. The next largest groups are White (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Dhruv most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Dhruv in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (4,340 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 Dhruv in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dhruv a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dhruv 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 Dhruv still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dhruv 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 Dhruv 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 common is the name Dhruv?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Dhruv at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.