Paymon
A masculine name of Persian origin potentially meaning "angel of prosperity".
Name Census estimates that about 55 living Americans carry the first name Paymon. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Paymon today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Paymon births was 1995 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Paymon. 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 Paymon. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
55
~ 1 in 6,231,897 Americans
Peak year
1995
10 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
1995 SSA rank
#5,798
Tracked since 1981
Census
Paymon in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 152 people with the first name Paymon, which placed it at #44,992 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
#44,992
National first-name rank
People counted
152
152 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
86.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paymon
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Paymon is White at 86.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.9%). 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 Paymon 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 Paymon at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.8% · 132
- Two or more races6.6% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.9% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 3
- Black or African American0.7% · 1
Popularity
Paymon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Paymon from the 1980s through to the 1990s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 31 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
Paymon 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 Paymon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Paymons live
Origin
Meaning and history of Paymon
The name Paymon is derived from the Persian language and has its origins in ancient Iranian culture. It is believed to have emerged during the pre-Islamic era, possibly as early as the Sassanid period (224-651 CE) or even earlier.
The name Paymon is thought to be a combination of two Persian words: "pay" meaning "foot" and "mon" meaning "to remain or stay." This suggests that the original meaning of the name may have been related to steadfastness or firmness, potentially referring to someone who stands their ground or remains steadfast.
In Islamic tradition, Paymon is also associated with the name of a powerful demon or jinn mentioned in various occult texts and grimoires, such as the Lesser Key of Solomon. However, it is unclear if there is a direct connection between the given name and this mythological figure.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Paymon was Paymon Shah, a 14th-century ruler of the Jalayirid dynasty in present-day Iran and Iraq. He reigned from 1366 to 1384 CE and played a significant role in the region's political landscape during that time.
Another notable figure was Paymon Sadeghian, an Iranian poet and literary figure who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (1858-1925). He was known for his contributions to the Persian literary tradition and his influential works during the Qajar era.
In more recent times, Paymon Baqeri (born 1979) is an Iranian film director and screenwriter who has gained recognition for his award-winning films, including "The Petry Gas Cylinder" and "The Tablecloth."
Paymon Akhavan (born 1977) is a renowned Iranian-Canadian lawyer and professor of international law, known for his work in human rights and international criminal law. He has served as a legal advisor to various international organizations and tribunals.
Paymon Rouhanifard (born 1983) is an American educator and former school superintendent in Camden, New Jersey. He has been recognized for his efforts in improving the city's public education system and advocating for educational reforms.
It is important to note that while these individuals have made significant contributions in their respective fields, the name Paymon has a rich history that predates modern times and is deeply rooted in the cultural heritage of ancient Persia.
People
Paymon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Paymon 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
Paymon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Paymon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 55 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Paymon 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 6,231,897 US residents.
Is Paymon a common name?
We classify Paymon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 55.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 57 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Paymon most popular?
The single biggest year for Paymon was 1995, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Paymon is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Paymon in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 152 people with the name Paymon, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,992 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 Paymon 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 Paymon?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Paymon appears almost entirely male. Of the 160 people counted with this name, 99.4% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Paymon?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Paymon is White at 86.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.9%). 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 Paymon most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Paymon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.8% (132 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 Paymon in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Paymon a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Paymon 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 Paymon still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Paymon 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 Paymon 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 Paymon?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.