Parisa
A feminine name of Persian origin meaning "like a fairy" or "fairy-like".
Name Census estimates that about 1,044 living Americans carry the first name Parisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Parisa today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Parisa births was 1991 (40 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Parisa. 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 Parisa with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.0K
~ 1 in 328,309 Americans
Peak year
1991
40 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,096
Tracked since 1971
Census
Parisa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,976 people with the first name Parisa, which placed it at #7,644 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
#7,644
National first-name rank
People counted
2.0K
1,976 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Parisa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Parisa is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (12.5%) and Two or More Races (11.7%). 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 Parisa 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 Parisa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.2% · 1,387
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.5% · 247
- Two or more races11.7% · 232
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 67
- Black or African American2.0% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Popularity
Parisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Parisa 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 266 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Parisa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Parisa 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 Parisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Parisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Parisa, while Virginia, Illinois, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 71 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Parisa
The name Parisa is of Persian origin, derived from the ancient Persian language and culture. It is believed to have emerged around the 6th century BCE during the Achaemenid Empire, one of the earliest Persian dynasties.
The name Parisa is thought to be derived from the Persian word "paridukht," which means "fairy-like" or "beautiful." This suggests that the name was originally associated with beauty, grace, and elegance in the Persian tradition.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Parisa appears in the ancient Persian epic poem, the Shahnameh, written by the renowned poet Ferdowsi in the late 10th century CE. In this epic, Parisa is mentioned as the name of a beautiful and virtuous princess.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Parisa. One of the earliest was Parisa Khanum (1828-1892), a prominent Persian poet and calligrapher during the Qajar dynasty. Her poetry and calligraphy works were highly acclaimed and influential in her time.
Another famous Parisa was Parisa Fitz-Henley (1819-1890), a Jamaican artist and activist known for her paintings depicting scenes of slavery and abolitionism. She was a prominent figure in the anti-slavery movement in Jamaica and the United Kingdom.
In the realm of literature, Parisa Khanizadeh (1928-2007) was an Iranian author and translator who played a significant role in introducing Western literature to Persian readers. Her translations of works by authors like Gabriel García Márquez and Albert Camus were widely acclaimed.
In more recent times, Parisa Fitz-Henley (born 1996) is a Jamaican-American actress known for her roles in popular TV series like "Luke Cage" and "Midnight, Texas." She has gained recognition for her performances and contribution to diverse representation in the entertainment industry.
Another notable Parisa is Parisa Lili Lorzadeh (born 1994), an Iranian-Canadian singer and songwriter. She has gained popularity for her unique blend of traditional Persian music with contemporary styles, and her works often explore themes of cultural identity and personal experiences.
While the name Parisa has Persian roots, it has transcended cultural boundaries and gained popularity in various parts of the world, reflecting the diverse and global nature of names and their meanings.
People
Parisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Parisa as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Parisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Parisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,044 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Parisa 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 328,309 US residents.
Is Parisa a common name?
We classify Parisa as "Rare". It ranks above 90.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,074 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Parisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Parisa was 1991, when 40 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Parisa is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Parisa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,976 people with the name Parisa, or 0.65 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,644 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 Parisa 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 Parisa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Parisa appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,975 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Parisa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Parisa is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (12.5%) and Two or More Races (11.7%). 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 Parisa most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Parisa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.2% (1,387 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 Parisa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Parisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Parisa in the SSA data are female. 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 Parisa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Parisa 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 Parisa 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 common is the name Parisa?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.