Kunal
A masculine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "the purest form of beauty".
Name Census estimates that about 1,221 living Americans carry the first name Kunal. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kunal today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kunal births was 1994 (60 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kunal. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 280,716 Americans
Peak year
1994
60 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2022 SSA rank
#11,675
Tracked since 1977
Popularity
Kunal: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kunal from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 454 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
Kunal 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 Kunal during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kunals live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. California, New Jersey, New York recorded the most babies named Kunal, while Connecticut, Virginia, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 67 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kunal
The name Kunal originates from the Sanskrit language and culture of ancient India. It has its roots in the word "kunala," which means "lotus" or "jasmine flower." The name is believed to have been derived during the Vedic period, which spans from around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kunal can be found in the Hindu epic, the Mahabharata, which dates back to around the 8th century BCE. In this ancient text, Kunal is mentioned as the name of a skilled archer and warrior.
During the medieval period, the name Kunal gained popularity among the ruling classes and nobility in various parts of the Indian subcontinent. It was often associated with individuals who were revered for their wisdom, courage, and leadership qualities.
In the 12th century, a renowned scholar and philosopher named Kunal Bhatt wrote several influential works on Hindu philosophy and theology. His contributions to the field of Advaita Vedanta, a non-dualistic school of Hinduism, are still widely studied and respected today.
Another notable figure in history who bore the name Kunal was Kunal Nath, a 14th-century warrior and military commander from the Rajput clan. He was known for his bravery and strategic skills in battles against the Delhi Sultanate.
In the 16th century, Kunal Singh, a nobleman and landowner from the Rajput community, played a significant role in the resistance against the Mughal Empire's expansion in northern India.
During the British colonial period in India, the name Kunal remained popular among the educated and affluent classes. One prominent individual with this name was Kunal Mukherjee, a renowned Bengali author and poet who lived from 1885 to 1964. His literary works often explored themes of love, nature, and the human condition.
In more recent times, the name Kunal has gained global recognition due to the success of individuals in various fields, such as Kunal Nayyar, a British-Indian actor best known for his role as Rajesh Koothrappali on the popular sitcom "The Big Bang Theory."
People
Kunal + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kunal 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
Kunal: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kunal?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,221 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kunal 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 280,716 US residents.
Is Kunal a common name?
We classify Kunal as "Rare". It ranks above 91.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,253 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kunal most popular?
The single biggest year for Kunal was 1994, when 60 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kunal is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kunal a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kunal 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.