Iseah
A name of uncertain origin and meaning, possibly related to Isaiah.
Name Census estimates that about 146 living Americans carry the first name Iseah. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Iseah today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Iseah births was 2004 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Iseah. 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.
People living today
146
~ 1 in 2,347,632 Americans
Peak year
2004
16 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2014 SSA rank
#12,797
Tracked since 1998
Census
Iseah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 220 people with the first name Iseah, which placed it at #36,203 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
#36,203
National first-name rank
People counted
220
220 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
71.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Iseah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Iseah is Hispanic at 71.8%. The next largest groups are Black (12.3%) and White (10.5%). 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 Iseah 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 Iseah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino71.8% · 158
- Black or African American12.3% · 27
- White10.5% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 5
- Two or more races2.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 2
Popularity
Iseah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Iseah from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 96 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Iseah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Iseah 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 Iseah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Iseahs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Iseah
The given name Iseah has its origins in the ancient Semitic languages of the Middle East, particularly in the Aramaic and Hebrew tongues spoken in the region during the first millennium BCE. It is derived from the Aramaic root word "ys'h," which translates to "deliverance" or "salvation." This root word is also found in the Hebrew language, where it takes the form "yeshua," carrying a similar meaning.
The earliest known references to the name Iseah can be traced back to the biblical texts of the Old Testament. In the Book of Ezra, one of the post-exilic writers is referred to as "Iseah the scribe." This particular individual played a crucial role in the reconstruction of Jerusalem and the restoration of the Jewish people after their return from the Babylonian captivity in the 5th century BCE.
Throughout the centuries, the name Iseah has been borne by various individuals of historical significance. One notable figure was Iseah ben Abba, a prominent Jewish scholar who lived in the 3rd century CE. He was a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest judicial and religious body in ancient Judea, and was renowned for his wisdom and expertise in the interpretation of Jewish law.
In the realm of Christian history, Iseah was the name of a 5th-century bishop of Tyre, a prominent city in ancient Phoenicia (modern-day Lebanon). He is remembered for his participation in the Council of Chalcedon, a pivotal event in the development of Christian doctrine, where he played a role in defining the nature of Christ's divinity and humanity.
Moving forward in time, Iseah al-Masih was a 9th-century Coptic scholar and writer from Egypt. He was known for his contributions to the field of Christian apologetics, defending the faith against criticisms from other religions and philosophical traditions of the time.
Another notable figure bearing the name Iseah was Iseah ibn al-Munaggim, a 10th-century Jewish astronomer and mathematician from Baghdad. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and was among the scholars who helped preserve and advance scientific knowledge during the Islamic Golden Age.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have carried the name Iseah, each leaving their mark in their respective fields and contributing to the rich tapestry of human civilization.
People
Iseah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Iseah 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
Iseah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Iseah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 146 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Iseah 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 2,347,632 US residents.
Is Iseah a common name?
We classify Iseah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 148 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Iseah most popular?
The single biggest year for Iseah was 2004, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Iseah is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Iseah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 220 people with the name Iseah, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #36,203 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 Iseah 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 Iseah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Iseah leans strongly male. 220 people counted with this name were male (97.8%), compared with 5 female bearers (2.2%). 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 Iseah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Iseah is Hispanic at 71.8%. The next largest groups are Black (12.3%) and White (10.5%). 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 Iseah most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Iseah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.8% (158 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 Iseah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Iseah a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Iseah 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 Iseah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Iseah 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 Iseah 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 share the name Iseah?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.