Mehtab
An Urdu name meaning "moonlight" or "the light of the moon".
Name Census estimates that about 300 living Americans carry the first name Mehtab. It is a predominantly male name (91.4% of registrations). The average person named Mehtab today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mehtab births was 2023 (40 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mehtab. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Mehtab with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
300
~ 1 in 1,142,514 Americans
Peak year
2023
40 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,649
Tracked since 2006
Census
Mehtab in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 363 people with the first name Mehtab, which placed it at #25,907 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
#25,907
National first-name rank
People counted
363
363 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
94.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mehtab
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mehtab is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.5%. The next largest groups are White (2.2%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Mehtab 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 Mehtab at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander94.5% · 343
- White2.2% · 8
- Two or more races1.4% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 3
- Black or African American0.3% · 1
Gender
Gender distribution for Mehtab
Mehtab leans heavily male at 91.4% of total registrations, but 26 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Mehtab as a male name
- Ranked #3,649 in 2024
- 31 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (31 births)
Mehtab as a female name
- Ranked #16,801 in 2024
- 5 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (9 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Mehtab on both sides of the split. Of the 365 people counted with this name, 264 were male (72.3%) and 101 were female (27.7%).
Popularity
Mehtab: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mehtab from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 158 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mehtab 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 Mehtab during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mehtabs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Mehtab
Mehtab is a name that originates from the Persian language, which is spoken primarily in Iran, Afghanistan, and parts of Central Asia. The name dates back to the medieval period, when Persian culture and literature were flourishing.
The word "Mehtab" is derived from the combination of two Persian words: "mah" meaning moon, and "tab" meaning radiance or shine. Therefore, the name "Mehtab" translates to "moonlight" or "radiance of the moon." It is a poetic and romantic name, reflecting the beauty and serenity of the moon's glow.
In Persian literature, the moon and its radiance have been a recurring motif, symbolizing love, beauty, and mysticism. The name Mehtab is often associated with these symbolic meanings, making it a popular choice for poets and writers throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mehtab can be found in the works of the renowned Persian poet, Hafez (1315-1390 AD). He frequently used the word "Mehtab" in his poems to describe the beauty of his beloved or the enchanting night sky.
Another notable figure with the name Mehtab was Mehtab Banu Begum (1590-1604 AD), a Mughal princess and the daughter of Emperor Akbar the Great. She was renowned for her beauty, intelligence, and her involvement in the cultural and intellectual life of the Mughal court.
In the 17th century, Mehtab Khan (1617-1668 AD) was a prominent military commander and noble in the Mughal Empire, serving under emperors Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb. He played a significant role in the Mughal campaigns and was known for his bravery and leadership skills.
During the 18th century, Mehtab Rai (1718-1772 AD) was a renowned painter from the Mughal era. He was a master of the Mughal miniature painting tradition and is renowned for his intricate and vibrant depictions of court life, portraits, and scenes from Persian literature.
In more recent times, Mehtab Haji (1902-1984) was a celebrated Indian classical singer and musician from the Patiala Gharana. She was known for her exceptional vocal range and her renditions of Khyal, Thumri, and other classical forms of Hindustani music.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Mehtab, a name deeply rooted in Persian culture and literature, evoking the beauty and radiance of the moon.
People
Mehtab + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mehtab as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Mehtab: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mehtab?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 300 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mehtab 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 1,142,514 US residents.
Is Mehtab a common name?
We classify Mehtab as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 302 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mehtab most popular?
The single biggest year for Mehtab was 2023, when 40 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mehtab is about 8 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mehtab in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 363 people with the name Mehtab, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #25,907 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 Mehtab 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 Mehtab?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Mehtab on both sides of the split. Of the 365 people counted with this name, 264 were male (72.3%) and 101 were female (27.7%). 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 Mehtab?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mehtab is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.5%. The next largest groups are White (2.2%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Mehtab most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Mehtab in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (343 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 Mehtab in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mehtab a male name?
Yes, 91.4% of people registered as Mehtab 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 Mehtab still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mehtab 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 Mehtab 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 Mehtab?
Find out how many Americans are named Mehtab on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.