Nobuo
A Japanese masculine name meaning "extending good".
Name Census estimates that about 9 living Americans carry the first name Nobuo. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nobuo today is around 102 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nobuo births was 1921 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nobuo. 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
- • The typical person named Nobuo is about 102 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Nobuos were born before 1934.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Nobuo. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
9
~ 1 in 38,083,815 Americans
Peak year
1921
23 babies that year
Average age
102
years old
1938 SSA rank
#3,887
Tracked since 1913
Census
Nobuo in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 199 people with the first name Nobuo, which placed it at #38,518 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
#38,518
National first-name rank
People counted
199
199 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
95.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nobuo
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nobuo is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.5%. The next largest groups are White (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Nobuo 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 Nobuo at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.5% · 190
- White2.0% · 4
- Two or more races1.5% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 2
Popularity
Nobuo: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nobuo from the 1910s through to the 1930s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 151 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nobuo 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 Nobuo during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nobuos live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Hawaii, California, Washington recorded the most babies named Nobuo, while Washington, California, Hawaii recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 56 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nobuo
The given name Nobuo has its origins in Japan, derived from the Japanese words "nobu" meaning "extend" or "prolong," and "o" meaning "masculine." Together, the name carries the meaning of "prolonging one's life" or "extending one's masculinity." It emerged during the Heian period (794-1185 CE) in Japan and has been in use for centuries.
The earliest recorded use of the name Nobuo can be traced back to the 11th century CE, when it appeared in historical records and literary works from the Heian era. However, it is believed to have been in use even earlier, as Japanese naming conventions often drew inspiration from nature, virtues, and aspirations.
One of the most notable historical figures bearing the name Nobuo was Nobuo Uematsu, a renowned Japanese video game composer and musician born in 1959. He is best known for his work on the Final Fantasy video game series, where his iconic scores have become an integral part of the gaming experience.
Another famous Nobuo was Nobuo Kawaguchi, a Japanese painter and illustrator born in 1909. He was deeply influenced by the Nihonga style of Japanese painting and is renowned for his depictions of traditional Japanese landscapes and scenes from everyday life.
In the realm of Japanese literature, Nobuo Kojima (1913-1994) was a prominent novelist and essayist, known for his works exploring themes of spirituality, nature, and the human condition. His novel "Chikyu Kokyo" (The Heartbeat of the Earth) is considered a masterpiece of modern Japanese literature.
Nobuo Sato (1926-2021) was a highly respected Japanese architect who played a significant role in shaping the post-war architectural landscape of Japan. His projects, including the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan (Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space), are celebrated for their innovative designs and seamless integration of traditional Japanese aesthetics with modern architectural principles.
Lastly, Nobuo Fujita (1911-1997), a Japanese aviator and officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II, gained notoriety for his involvement in the Lookout Air Raids, where he carried out the only air attack on continental United States during the war. While controversial, his story remains a notable part of World War II history.
People
Nobuo + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nobuo 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
Nobuo: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nobuo?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 9 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nobuo 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 38,083,815 US residents.
Is Nobuo a common name?
We classify Nobuo as "Very Rare". It ranks above 25.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 242 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nobuo most popular?
The single biggest year for Nobuo was 1921, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nobuo is about 102 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nobuo in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 199 people with the name Nobuo, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #38,518 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 Nobuo 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 Nobuo?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nobuo leans strongly male. 199 people counted with this name were male (97.1%), compared with 6 female bearers (2.9%). 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 Nobuo?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nobuo is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.5%. The next largest groups are White (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Nobuo most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Nobuo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (190 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 Nobuo in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nobuo a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nobuo 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 Nobuo still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nobuo 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 Nobuo 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 are named Nobuo?
Find out how many people have the name Nobuo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.