Gurnoor
A masculine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "the guru's light".
Name Census estimates that about 526 living Americans carry the first name Gurnoor. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 68.9% of registrations being female. The average person named Gurnoor today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gurnoor births was 2014 (45 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gurnoor. 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 Gurnoor with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
526
~ 1 in 651,624 Americans
Peak year
2014
45 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,343
Tracked since 2003
Census
Gurnoor in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 521 people with the first name Gurnoor, which placed it at #19,995 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
#19,995
National first-name rank
People counted
521
521 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
95.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gurnoor
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gurnoor is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.4%. The next largest groups are White (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.3%). 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 Gurnoor 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 Gurnoor at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.4% · 497
- White1.7% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 3
- Two or more races0.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.4% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Gurnoor
Gurnoor is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 530 total registrations, 165 (31.1%) were male and 365 (68.9%) were female.
Gurnoor as a male name
- Ranked #9,268 in 2024
- 8 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2011 (21 births)
Gurnoor as a female name
- Ranked #7,343 in 2024
- 15 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2014 (31 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Gurnoor on both sides of the split. Of the 527 people counted with this name, 214 were male (40.6%) and 313 were female (59.4%).
Popularity
Gurnoor: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gurnoor from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 355 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gurnoor 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 Gurnoor during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gurnoors live
Origin
Meaning and history of Gurnoor
The name Gurnoor is a Punjabi name that originated in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. It is derived from the combination of two Punjabi words, "Gur" meaning "teacher" or "spiritual guide," and "Noor" meaning "light" or "enlightenment." Together, the name Gurnoor can be interpreted as "the light of the spiritual guide" or "the enlightenment of the teacher."
The name has its roots in the Sikh tradition, which emerged in the 15th century in the Punjab region. It is likely that the name gained popularity among the Sikh community as a way to honor and pay respect to the Ten Gurus, who were the spiritual leaders and teachers of Sikhism.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gurnoor can be found in the 18th century, when Gurnoor Singh, a prominent Sikh warrior and military leader, lived and fought against the Mughal Empire. He played a significant role in the Sikh resistance against the Mughals and is remembered for his bravery and devotion to the Sikh faith.
Another notable figure in history with the name Gurnoor was Gurnoor Kaur, a Sikh princess who lived in the late 18th century. She was the daughter of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the powerful ruler of the Sikh Empire, and is remembered for her dedication to charitable works and her support of the arts and culture.
In the 20th century, Gurnoor Singh Sidhu was a renowned Punjabi writer and poet who made significant contributions to the literary world. He was born in 1923 and his works explored themes of love, spirituality, and social issues, earning him widespread recognition and numerous awards.
More recently, Gurnoor Dhatt is a Canadian actress and model who has appeared in various television shows and films. She was born in 1993 and is known for her roles in projects like "The 100" and "Supernatural."
Gurnoor Chadha, born in 1995, is an Indian singer and songwriter who has gained popularity for her fusion of Punjabi and Western music styles. Her unique sound and captivating performances have earned her a dedicated following, particularly among the younger generation.
People
Gurnoor + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gurnoor 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
Gurnoor: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gurnoor?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 526 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gurnoor 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 651,624 US residents.
Is Gurnoor a common name?
We classify Gurnoor as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 530 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gurnoor most popular?
The single biggest year for Gurnoor was 2014, when 45 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gurnoor is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Gurnoor in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 521 people with the name Gurnoor, or 0.17 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #19,995 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 Gurnoor 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 Gurnoor?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Gurnoor on both sides of the split. Of the 527 people counted with this name, 214 were male (40.6%) and 313 were female (59.4%). 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 Gurnoor?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gurnoor is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.4%. The next largest groups are White (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.3%). 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 Gurnoor most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Gurnoor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.4% (497 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 Gurnoor in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Gurnoor a female name?
Yes, 68.9% of people registered as Gurnoor 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 Gurnoor still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Gurnoor 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 Gurnoor 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 Americans are named Gurnoor?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.