Nissan
Hebrew name meaning "miracle" or "great fortune".
Name Census estimates that about 91 living Americans carry the first name Nissan. It is a predominantly male name (94.6% of registrations). The average person named Nissan today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nissan births was 1994 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nissan. 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 Nissan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
91
~ 1 in 3,766,531 Americans
Peak year
1994
10 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,456
Tracked since 1982
Gender
Gender distribution for Nissan
Nissan leans heavily male at 94.6% of total registrations, but 5 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Nissan as a male name
- Ranked #11,889 in 2024
- 6 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1994 (10 births)
Nissan as a female name
- Ranked #11,456 in 1983
- 5 female births in 1983
- Peak: 1983 (5 births)
Popularity
Nissan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nissan from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 40 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Nissan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nissan 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 Nissan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nissans live
Origin
Meaning and history of Nissan
The name Nissan originates from the Hebrew language, derived from the Hebrew word "nissim," which means "miracles." It is believed to have first appeared in ancient Jewish texts and scriptures during the Biblical era, around the 6th century BCE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nissan can be found in the Book of Esther, where it is mentioned as the name of the Hebrew month during which the events described in the book took place. This month corresponds to March-April in the Gregorian calendar.
In the Middle Ages, the name Nissan was occasionally used by Jewish communities, but it remained relatively uncommon until the 19th century. One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name was Nissan ben Avraham (1590-1660), a prominent Jewish scholar and Kabbalist from Safed, Palestine.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the name Nissan gained popularity among Ashkenazi Jewish families in Eastern Europe. Nissan Shtarkes (1802-1884) was a renowned Hebrew poet and writer from Ukraine, while Nissan Mindel (1834-1912) was a prominent Hasidic rabbi and leader in Poland.
Another notable figure with the name Nissan was Nissan Nativ (1885-1924), a Hebrew writer, poet, and educator who played a significant role in the revival of the Hebrew language and the development of modern Hebrew literature.
In more recent history, Nissan Slomiansky (1920-1992) was an Israeli politician and member of the Knesset (Israeli parliament), while Nissan Levi (1937-2022) was an Israeli football player and manager who represented Israel's national team.
While the name Nissan has its roots in ancient Hebrew culture, it has since been adopted by various communities around the world, particularly among Jews of various backgrounds. However, its usage remains relatively uncommon compared to other Hebrew names.
People
Nissan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nissan 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
Nissan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nissan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 91 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nissan 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 3,766,531 US residents.
Is Nissan a common name?
We classify Nissan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 93 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nissan most popular?
The single biggest year for Nissan was 1994, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nissan is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Nissan a male name?
Yes, 94.6% of people registered as Nissan 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.