Faraji
One of Arabic origin meaning "comforter" or "one who brings comfort".
Name Census estimates that about 48 living Americans carry the first name Faraji. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Faraji today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Faraji births was 1977 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Faraji. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Faraji. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
48
~ 1 in 7,140,715 Americans
Peak year
1977
7 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2023 SSA rank
#12,815
Tracked since 1975
Popularity
Faraji: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Faraji from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 30 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Faraji 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 Faraji 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 Faraji
The name Faraji originates from the Swahili language, which is spoken primarily in East Africa. It is derived from the Arabic word "faraj," meaning "relief" or "deliverance." The Swahili people are an ethnic group found along the coast of Kenya and Tanzania, with influences from Arab, Persian, and Indian cultures.
Faraji is believed to have been in use among the Swahili people since the 8th century, during the height of the Arab maritime trade in the Indian Ocean. The name likely gained prominence as a reflection of the cultural and religious influences of Islam in the region.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Faraji can be found in the Swahili epic poem "Utendi wa Tambuka," written in the 17th century. The poem tells the story of a Swahili hero named Faraji, who embarks on a journey across the Indian Ocean.
In the 19th century, Faraji became a notable name among the ruling dynasties of the Swahili Coast. Faraji bin Omari, born around 1800, was a prominent ruler of the Kilwa Sultanate, a powerful trading state located in modern-day Tanzania.
Another historical figure bearing the name Faraji was Faraji Fumo Luti, a 19th-century Swahili poet and Islamic scholar from Mombasa, Kenya. His works, such as the poem "Utendi wa Ras il-Ghuli," are considered important contributions to Swahili literature.
In the 20th century, Faraji Ali, born in 1916, was a renowned Swahili musician and composer from Zanzibar. He is credited with popularizing the taarab music genre, a fusion of Arabic, Indian, and African musical styles.
Faraji Gamonga, born in 1927, was a prominent Tanzanian writer and journalist. He is best known for his novel "Kusadikika," which explored themes of love, betrayal, and social change in post-colonial Tanzania.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who carried the name Faraji throughout history, reflecting its deep roots and cultural significance in the Swahili-speaking regions of East Africa.
People
Faraji + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Faraji as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Faraji: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Faraji?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 48 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Faraji 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 7,140,715 US residents.
Is Faraji a common name?
We classify Faraji as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 50 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Faraji most popular?
The single biggest year for Faraji was 1977, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Faraji is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Faraji in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Faraji a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Faraji 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 Faraji still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Faraji 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 Faraji 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Faraji?
Find out how many people share the name Faraji on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.