Ikeya
A Japanese name derived from the word "ikeru" meaning "living" or "thriving".
Name Census estimates that about 98 living Americans carry the first name Ikeya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ikeya today is around 35 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ikeya births was 1991 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ikeya. 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 Ikeya. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
98
~ 1 in 3,497,493 Americans
Peak year
1991
13 babies that year
Average age
35
years old
2003 SSA rank
#14,536
Tracked since 1978
Popularity
Ikeya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ikeya from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 64 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ikeya 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 Ikeya 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 Ikeya
The name Ikeya originates from Japan, where it is a rare given name. It is believed to have its roots in the Japanese word "ikeru," which means "to live" or "to survive." The name may have been given to individuals who survived difficult circumstances or were considered strong and resilient.
In ancient Japanese literature, there are no significant references to the name Ikeya. However, it is possible that the name was used in local communities and villages, particularly among families or clans that valued strength and perseverance.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Ikeya was Ikeya Seki, a Japanese astronomer who lived from 1839 to 1900. He is best known for discovering several comets, including the Comet Ikeya-Seki in 1965, which bears his name.
Another notable figure with the name Ikeya was Ikeya Kaoru, a Japanese artist and sculptor who lived from 1880 to 1949. He is renowned for his work in the Nihonga style, which combines traditional Japanese painting techniques with Western-influenced elements.
In the field of literature, Ikeya Toshio (1891-1965) was a prominent Japanese writer and poet. He is particularly known for his contributions to the "Proletarian Literature" movement, which focused on portraying the lives and struggles of the working class.
Ikeya Akira (1924-2012) was a Japanese photographer who documented post-World War II Japan. His work captured the rapid urbanization and modernization of the country, as well as the lives of ordinary people during this period of transition.
Lastly, Ikeya Satoshi (born 1963) is a contemporary Japanese artist known for his large-scale installations and sculptures. His works often explore themes of nature, technology, and the human condition, utilizing materials such as wood, metal, and glass.
People
Ikeya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ikeya as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with I
Other first names starting with I with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ikeya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ikeya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 98 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ikeya 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 3,497,493 US residents.
Is Ikeya a common name?
We classify Ikeya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 64.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 102 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ikeya most popular?
The single biggest year for Ikeya was 1991, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ikeya is about 35 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ikeya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ikeya 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.
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.