Ghulam
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "servant" or "slave".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Ghulam. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ghulam today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ghulam births was 1983 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ghulam. 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 Ghulam with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ghulam. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1983
5 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2008 SSA rank
#13,198
Tracked since 1983
Census
Ghulam in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,693 people with the first name Ghulam, which placed it at #8,552 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
#8,552
National first-name rank
People counted
1.7K
1,693 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
87.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ghulam
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ghulam is Asian/Pacific Islander at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.2%) and White (2.5%). 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 Ghulam 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 Ghulam at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander87.1% · 1,474
- Two or more races9.2% · 155
- White2.5% · 42
- Black or African American0.9% · 16
- Hispanic or Latino0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Popularity
Ghulam: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ghulam from the 1980s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 5 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
Ghulam 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 Ghulam 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 Ghulam
The name Ghulam has its origins in the Arabic language. It is derived from the Arabic word "ghulam," which means "servant" or "slave." The name first appeared during the early Islamic era, around the 7th century CE.
In Islamic culture, the term "ghulam" was often used to refer to young male servants or slaves who were employed in noble households or royal courts. These individuals were typically trained in various skills and disciplines, such as warfare, administration, and literature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ghulam can be found in the Quran, the holy book of Islam. In Surah Al-Noor (Chapter 24, Verse 33), the word "ghulam" is mentioned in the context of encouraging the manumission (freeing) of slaves.
Throughout Islamic history, several notable individuals bore the name Ghulam. One of the most famous was Ghulam Kadir, a 15th-century Sufi saint and poet from present-day Pakistan. He is renowned for his spiritual poetry and his teachings on the mystical path.
Another prominent figure named Ghulam was Ghulam Qadir Rohilla, an 18th-century Afghan military leader who established the Rohilla state in northern India. He played a significant role in the power struggles between the Mughal Empire and the emerging regional powers.
In the 19th century, Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, was a influential figure who claimed to be the promised Messiah and Mahdi. His teachings and interpretations of Islamic scripture sparked a significant reform movement within Islam.
Ghulam Mohammed, an Indian Muslim freedom fighter and revolutionary, was also a notable individual who bore this name. He was actively involved in the Indian independence movement against British colonial rule in the early 20th century.
Lastly, Ghulam Ishaq Khan, born in 1915, was a prominent Pakistani statesman who served as the 7th President of Pakistan from 1988 to 1993. He played a crucial role in shaping Pakistan's political landscape during a period of turbulence and transition.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who carried the name Ghulam, reflecting its deep roots in Islamic culture and its association with the concept of servitude and devotion.
People
Ghulam + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ghulam as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ghulam: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ghulam?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ghulam 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Ghulam a common name?
We classify Ghulam as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ghulam most popular?
The single biggest year for Ghulam was 1983, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ghulam is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ghulam in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,693 people with the name Ghulam, or 0.56 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #8,552 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 Ghulam 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 Ghulam?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ghulam leans strongly male. 1,547 people counted with this name were male (91.2%), compared with 149 female bearers (8.8%). 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 Ghulam?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ghulam is Asian/Pacific Islander at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.2%) and White (2.5%). 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 Ghulam most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Ghulam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (1,474 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 Ghulam in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ghulam a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ghulam 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 Ghulam still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ghulam 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 Ghulam 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 are named Ghulam?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.