Pouya
Of Persian origin, meaning "youth" or "spiritual youngster".
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Pouya. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Pouya today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pouya births was 1988 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pouya. 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 Pouya. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
1988
6 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
1988 SSA rank
#7,028
Tracked since 1988
Census
Pouya in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 411 people with the first name Pouya, which placed it at #23,711 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
#23,711
National first-name rank
People counted
411
411 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
84.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pouya
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Pouya is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.2%). 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 Pouya 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 Pouya at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.7% · 348
- Two or more races11.4% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.2% · 9
- Black or African American0.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.7% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Popularity
Pouya: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Pouya 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 Pouya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Pouya
The name Pouya has its origins in the Persian language and culture, with roots dating back several centuries. It is derived from the old Persian word "Puya," which means "pure" or "innocent." The earliest recorded use of the name can be traced back to ancient Persia, modern-day Iran.
One of the earliest mentions of the name Pouya is found in the Shahnameh, a legendary epic poem written by the renowned Persian poet Ferdowsi in the late 10th century AD. The poem tells the story of a character named Pouya, who is depicted as a brave and noble warrior. This literary reference suggests that the name was already in use during that era.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the name Pouya. One of the earliest recorded instances is Pouya ibn Khosrow (born around 1050 AD), a Persian scholar and poet who lived during the Seljuk Empire. His works contributed significantly to the development of Persian literature and poetry.
Another prominent figure was Pouya Motamed (1904-1982), an Iranian filmmaker and actor who played a crucial role in the early days of Iranian cinema. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of the Iranian film industry and is remembered for his influential works.
In the realm of sports, Pouya Idani (born 1981) is a notable Iranian wrestler who has won numerous medals and championships, including a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. His achievements have brought pride and recognition to the name Pouya on the international stage.
Moving to the music industry, Pouya (born 1994) is a contemporary American rapper of Persian descent. He has gained a significant following with his unique style and lyrics, contributing to the popularity of the name among younger generations.
While these are just a few examples, the name Pouya has been carried by many other individuals throughout history, each leaving their mark in various fields and disciplines. Its enduring presence across centuries reflects its rich cultural heritage and the significance it holds in the Persian tradition.
People
Pouya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pouya 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
Pouya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pouya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pouya 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 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Pouya a common name?
We classify Pouya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pouya most popular?
The single biggest year for Pouya was 1988, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pouya 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 Pouya in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 411 people with the name Pouya, or 0.14 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #23,711 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 Pouya 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 Pouya?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Pouya leans strongly male. 402 people counted with this name were male (97.3%), compared with 11 female bearers (2.7%). 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 Pouya?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Pouya is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.2%). 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 Pouya most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Pouya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.7% (348 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 Pouya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Pouya a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pouya 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 Pouya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Pouya 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 Pouya 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 Pouya?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.