Joshva
A masculine name derived from Joshua, of Hebrew origin meaning "Yahweh is salvation".
Name Census estimates that about 56 living Americans carry the first name Joshva. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Joshva today is around 42 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Joshva births was 1988 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Joshva. 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 Joshva. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
56
~ 1 in 6,120,613 Americans
Peak year
1988
8 babies that year
Average age
42
years old
1991 SSA rank
#7,733
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Joshva: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Joshva from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 35 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Joshva 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 Joshva 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 Joshva
The name Joshva is a variation of the Hebrew name Yehoshua, which is derived from the roots yeho, meaning "Yahweh" (the Hebrew name for God), and yasha, meaning "to save" or "to deliver." The name can be interpreted as "Yahweh is salvation" or "Yahweh is deliverance."
One of the earliest and most significant figures in history to bear this name was Joshua, the successor of Moses and the leader who led the Israelites into the Promised Land of Canaan after their exodus from Egypt. The name Joshva is mentioned numerous times in the Old Testament, particularly in the Book of Joshua, which recounts the conquest of Canaan under his leadership.
In ancient times, the name Joshva was primarily used by Jewish communities and those of the Hebrew faith. However, its popularity spread to other cultures and religions, and variations of the name emerged in different languages and spellings.
One notable historical figure who bore a variation of the name Joshva was Joshua the Stylite, a Byzantine monk and chronicler who lived in the 6th century AD. He is known for his eyewitness account of the Persian conquest of Antioch in 540 AD, which provides valuable insights into the events of that time.
Another famous bearer of the name was Joshua Haggis, a 17th-century English clergyman and author, who served as the rector of Demerara in British Guiana (now Guyana) from 1673 to 1675. He wrote several works on religious topics and was known for his efforts to promote education in the colony.
In the 18th century, Joshua Reynolds, an influential English portrait painter, was a prominent figure in the artistic world. Born in 1723 and died in 1792, he was a founding member of the Royal Academy of Arts and is considered one of the most important artists of the late 18th century.
Joshva Sasportas, a Jewish rabbi and writer, was born in Amsterdam in 1610 and died in 1698. He was a prominent figure in the Jewish community of Amsterdam and is known for his works on Jewish law and philosophy.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore variations of the name Joshva, highlighting its deep roots and enduring presence across different cultures and eras.
People
Joshva + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Joshva as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Joshva: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Joshva?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 56 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Joshva 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 6,120,613 US residents.
Is Joshva a common name?
We classify Joshva as "Very Rare". It ranks above 56% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 59 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Joshva most popular?
The single biggest year for Joshva was 1988, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Joshva is about 42 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Joshva in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Joshva a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Joshva 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 Joshva still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Joshva 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 Joshva 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Joshva?
Find out how many people share the name Joshva on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.