Erum
A feminine Muslim name of Arabic origin meaning "lofty, exalted, high-ranked".
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the first name Erum. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Erum today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Erum births was 1995 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Erum. 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 Erum with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
114
~ 1 in 3,006,617 Americans
Peak year
1995
9 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2019 SSA rank
#16,286
Tracked since 1975
Census
Erum in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 708 people with the first name Erum, which placed it at #16,051 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
#16,051
National first-name rank
People counted
708
708 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
96.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Erum
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Erum is Asian/Pacific Islander at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.6%) and White (1.0%). 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 Erum 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 Erum at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander96.5% · 683
- Two or more races1.6% · 11
- White1.0% · 7
- Black or African American0.8% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino0.1% · 1
Popularity
Erum: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Erum from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 42 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Erum remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Erum 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 Erum 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 Erum
The name Erum is believed to have originated from the ancient Sanskrit language, which was widely spoken in the Indian subcontinent during the Vedic period (around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE). It is derived from the root word "ruh," meaning "to grow" or "to rise," with the prefix "e" potentially indicating a sense of ascension or elevation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Erum can be found in the Hindu epic, the Mahabharata, where it was mentioned as the name of a warrior from the Kuru clan. This ancient text, which dates back to around the 8th or 9th century BCE, provides an early glimpse into the use of the name in the region.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Erum. One such individual was Erum Khan (1670-1735), a powerful Mughal governor who ruled over the regions of Bengal and Orissa during the early 18th century. His reign was marked by significant cultural and architectural developments, including the construction of several mosques and palaces.
Another notable bearer of the name was Erum Aram (1923-2009), an Iranian poet and writer who made significant contributions to the Persian literary world. Her poetic works often explored themes of love, spirituality, and the human condition, earning her widespread acclaim and recognition.
In the field of music, Erum Naqvi (born 1984) is a renowned Pakistani singer and songwriter. Her fusion of traditional Pakistani and contemporary Western styles has garnered her a loyal following and numerous accolades, including multiple Lux Style Awards.
The name Erum has also been associated with individuals in the realm of sports. Erum Khawaja (born 1978) is a former Pakistani cricketer who represented the national team in both Test and One Day International formats, earning recognition for her batting prowess and leadership skills on the field.
While the name Erum may not be as widely known or popular as some other names, its rich historical roots and the accomplishments of those who have borne it throughout the ages have contributed to its enduring presence and significance across various cultures and regions.
People
Erum + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Erum as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Erum: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Erum?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 114 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Erum 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 3,006,617 US residents.
Is Erum a common name?
We classify Erum as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 119 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Erum most popular?
The single biggest year for Erum was 1995, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Erum is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Erum in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 708 people with the name Erum, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,051 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 Erum 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 Erum?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Erum leans strongly female. 700 people counted with this name were female (98.9%), compared with 8 male bearers (1.1%). 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 Erum?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Erum is Asian/Pacific Islander at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.6%) and White (1.0%). 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 Erum most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Erum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.5% (683 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 Erum in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Erum a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Erum 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.
Is Erum still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Erum 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 Erum 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 Erum as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Erum on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.