Kush
An Arabic masculine name derived from the word "kush", meaning happiness and joy.
Name Census estimates that about 1,186 living Americans carry the first name Kush. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kush today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kush births was 2005 (65 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kush. 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 289,000 Americans
Peak year
2005
65 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,632
Tracked since 1980
Popularity
Kush: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kush from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 484 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kush 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 Kush during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kushs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. New Jersey, California, Illinois recorded the most babies named Kush, while Massachusetts, Florida, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 42 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kush
The name Kush has its origins in ancient India, originating from the Sanskrit word "kusha" meaning "blade of grass" or "sacred grass used in religious rituals." This name can be traced back to the Vedic period, around 1500-500 BCE, when it was commonly used among the Brahmin class and associated with spiritual practices.
In Hindu mythology, Kush was the name of one of the sons of Rama, the protagonist of the epic Ramayana. Kush, along with his brother Lava, were born to Rama's wife Sita during her exile in the forest. They were known for their devotion to their parents and their role in upholding dharma (righteous conduct).
The name Kush also has significance in ancient Persian culture. It was the name of a region in the northeastern part of the Persian Empire, which encompassed parts of modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. The name Kush may have been derived from the Old Persian word "kusha," meaning "beautiful" or "pleasant."
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Kush was Kush ibn Shayban, an Arab poet and warrior who lived in the 7th century CE. He was known for his bravery and skill in battle, as well as his poetic talents.
In the 12th century, Kush was the name of a famous Muslim scholar and jurist, Kushyar ibn Labban. He was born in Nishapur, Iran, and was known for his contributions to Islamic jurisprudence and his writings on theology and philosophy.
Another notable figure with the name Kush was Kush ibn Alwan, a 9th-century Arab mathematician and astronomer from Baghdad. He is credited with making significant contributions to the development of algebra and the study of celestial mechanics.
In the 16th century, Kush was the name of a famous Indian musician and composer, Kushna Khan. He was a court musician during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar and is known for his contributions to the development of Indian classical music.
Kush was also the name of a 19th-century Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary, Kush Bagh. He was a key figure in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against British rule and was known for his bravery and dedication to the cause of Indian independence.
People
Kush + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kush 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
Kush: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kush?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,186 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kush 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 289,000 US residents.
Is Kush a common name?
We classify Kush as "Rare". It ranks above 91.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,203 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kush most popular?
The single biggest year for Kush was 2005, when 65 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kush is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kush a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kush 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.