Nakai
A Japanese name meaning "mid-portion" or "inner sea".
Name Census estimates that about 1,055 living Americans carry the first name Nakai. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 82.7% of registrations being male. The average person named Nakai today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nakai births was 2021 (61 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nakai. 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
- • Nakai is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 324,886 Americans
Peak year
2021
61 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,073
Tracked since 1974
Gender
Gender distribution for Nakai
Nakai leans heavily male at 82.7% of total registrations, but 185 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Nakai as a male name
- Ranked #3,073 in 2024
- 40 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2021 (54 births)
Nakai as a female name
- Ranked #11,800 in 2024
- 8 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2008 (14 births)
Popularity
Nakai: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nakai from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 367 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Nakai remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nakai 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 Nakai during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nakais live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. California, New York, Florida recorded the most babies named Nakai, while Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 19 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nakai
The given name Nakai has its origins in Japanese culture and language. It is a unisex name that can be used for both males and females. The name is derived from the Japanese words "na" meaning "greens" or "vegetables" and "kai" meaning "ocean" or "sea". Collectively, the name Nakai can be interpreted as "greens by the ocean" or "vegetables by the sea".
In ancient times, the name was often given to children born in coastal regions or near the sea, where agriculture and fishing were important aspects of daily life. The name symbolized the harmony between the land and the sea, reflecting the close relationship between the two sources of sustenance.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Nakai can be found in the Kojiki, an ancient Japanese chronicle dating back to the 8th century AD. Here, the name is mentioned in reference to a minor noble or samurai warrior.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Nakai. One of the earliest examples is Nakai Tokurogen (1543-1594), a renowned Japanese poet and calligrapher during the Azuchi-Momoyama period. His works were highly acclaimed and have been preserved in various anthologies.
Another prominent figure was Nakai Chikuzen no Kami (1608-1678), a Japanese daimyo (feudal lord) who ruled over the Tosa Domain (present-day Kochi Prefecture) during the Edo period. He was known for his administrative skills and for promoting economic development in his domain.
In more modern times, Nakai Masahiro (1936-2017) was a celebrated Japanese actor and singer. He gained popularity for his roles in numerous films and television series, and his career spanned over six decades.
Nakai Noriko (born 1972) is a contemporary Japanese actress and singer. She has appeared in various television dramas, films, and stage productions, and has also released several music albums.
Nakai Atsushi (born 1986) is a Japanese professional baseball player who currently plays for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in the Nippon Professional Baseball league. He is a highly regarded pitcher and has won multiple awards and championships throughout his career.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have borne the name Nakai throughout history, reflecting the name's long-standing presence and cultural significance in Japan.
People
Nakai + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nakai as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nakai: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nakai?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,055 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nakai 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 324,886 US residents.
Is Nakai a common name?
We classify Nakai as "Rare". It ranks above 90.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,069 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nakai most popular?
The single biggest year for Nakai was 2021, when 61 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nakai is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Nakai a male name?
Yes, 82.7% of people registered as Nakai 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.