Iori
A unisex Japanese name meaning "to reap, to harvest".
Name Census estimates that about 94 living Americans carry the first name Iori. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Iori today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Iori births was 2011 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Iori. 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 Iori. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
94
~ 1 in 3,646,323 Americans
Peak year
2011
9 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2021 SSA rank
#12,855
Tracked since 2002
Popularity
Iori: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Iori 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 47 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
Iori 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 Iori 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 Iori
The name Iori has its origins rooted in Japanese culture and language. It is a gender-neutral name that has been in use for centuries, with its earliest recorded instances dating back to the 8th century CE.
The name Iori is comprised of two kanji characters – "io" (意緒), which means "thought" or "idea", and "ri" (理), which translates to "reason" or "logic". Together, the name can be interpreted to mean "a thoughtful and logical person" or "one with profound ideas and a rational mind".
In ancient Japanese texts, the name Iori was often associated with scholars, philosophers, and intellectuals. One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the "Nihon Shoki" (Chronicles of Japan), a historical text compiled in the 8th century CE, where it refers to a scholar and advisor to the imperial court.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Iori. One of the most famous was Iori Motoki (1860-1923), a Japanese politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs during the Meiji era. Another prominent figure was Iori Tomisaburo (1866-1957), a renowned Japanese artist and painter known for his depictions of traditional Japanese landscapes and scenery.
In the realm of literature, Iori Futaba (1887-1938) was a celebrated Japanese novelist and poet, renowned for her works exploring themes of love, loss, and the human condition. Her novel "Hana no Kusari" (Chain of Flowers) is considered a masterpiece of modern Japanese literature.
The name Iori has also been associated with notable figures in the world of Japanese martial arts. Iori Hidetoshi (1912-1996) was a renowned master of Kendo, the Japanese art of swordsmanship, and played a significant role in popularizing the discipline both within Japan and internationally.
Another prominent individual with the name Iori was Iori Yuzuru (1905-1974), a Japanese businessman and industrialist who played a pivotal role in the post-World War II economic recovery of Japan. He was the founder of the Iori Group, a conglomerate spanning various industries, including automotive, electronics, and real estate.
While the name Iori has its roots in Japanese culture, it has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among those with an appreciation for its unique meaning and historical significance. However, its origins and earliest recorded usage can be traced back to the ancient Japanese civilization, where it was associated with intellectual pursuits, artistic expression, and cultural heritage.
People
Iori + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Iori 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
Iori: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Iori?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 94 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Iori 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 3,646,323 US residents.
Is Iori a common name?
We classify Iori as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 95 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Iori most popular?
The single biggest year for Iori was 2011, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Iori is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Iori a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Iori 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.
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.