Keisen
A Japanese name meaning "disciplined" or "reverent one".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Keisen. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Keisen today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Keisen births was 2018 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Keisen. 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 Keisen. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2018
5 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2018 SSA rank
#13,192
Tracked since 2018
Popularity
Keisen: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Keisen 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 Keisen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Keisen
The name Keisen originates from Japan, where it has been used for centuries. It is composed of two Japanese kanji characters, "kei" meaning "respect" or "reverence," and "sen" meaning "line" or "path." Essentially, Keisen can be interpreted as "the path of respect" or "the reverent way."
This name has its roots in Japanese Buddhism, particularly in Zen philosophy. The concept of following a respectful and mindful path towards enlightenment is central to Zen teachings. As such, the name Keisen may have been bestowed upon individuals who were believed to be walking this spiritual path with reverence and humility.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Keisen can be found in the 14th century, when a renowned Zen Buddhist monk and calligrapher, Keisen Sōmoku, lived and worked in Japan. He was celebrated for his masterful calligraphic works and his contributions to the art of "shodo" or Japanese calligraphy.
Another notable figure with the name Keisen was Keisen Takamine, a Japanese industrialist and entrepreneur who lived from 1868 to 1944. He played a significant role in the development of the brewing industry in Japan and helped establish the country's first modern beer brewery, the Osaka Brewing Company.
In the realm of martial arts, Keisen Fukumoto (1904-1988) was a renowned practitioner and teacher of Okinawan Goju-Ryu karate. He was instrumental in preserving and propagating this traditional form of karate, both in Japan and internationally.
Keisen Mizushima (1920-2002) was a Japanese actor and voice actor who had a long and distinguished career in both film and television. He is particularly remembered for his voice work in various anime series, where he lent his distinctive voice to numerous characters.
Lastly, Keisen Takeuchi (1913-1991) was a Japanese artist and printmaker who specialized in traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques. His intricate and detailed works depicting landscapes and natural scenes earned him recognition both within Japan and abroad.
These examples illustrate the diverse fields and walks of life in which individuals bearing the name Keisen have made their mark throughout history, reflecting the name's connection to a path of respect and reverence, whether in spiritual pursuits, business endeavors, martial arts, or artistic expression.
People
Keisen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Keisen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Keisen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Keisen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Keisen 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Keisen a common name?
We classify Keisen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Keisen most popular?
The single biggest year for Keisen was 2018, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Keisen is about 8 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 Keisen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Keisen a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Keisen 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 Keisen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Keisen 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 Keisen 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 Keisen?
Find out how many Americans are named Keisen on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.