Raghav
A masculine given name of Sanskrit origin meaning "illustrious" or "prominent".
Name Census estimates that about 1,235 living Americans carry the first name Raghav. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Raghav today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Raghav births was 2024 (71 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Raghav. 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
- • Raghav is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.2K
~ 1 in 277,534 Americans
Peak year
2024
71 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,106
Tracked since 1990
Popularity
Raghav: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Raghav from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 488 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Raghav remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Raghav 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 Raghav during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Raghavs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. California, New Jersey, Texas recorded the most babies named Raghav, while Virginia, Massachusetts, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 53 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Raghav
The name Raghav is of Hindu origin, derived from the Sanskrit word 'Raghava', which means 'the descendant of Raghu'. Raghu was a famous king from the Suryavanshi dynasty, who ruled the kingdom of Ayodhya in ancient India.
The name Raghav finds its roots in the epic Ramayana, one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India. Lord Rama, the central figure of the Ramayana, was also known as Raghav or Raghunath, as he was a descendant of King Raghu.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Raghav can be found in the Ramayana itself, where it is used as an epithet for Lord Rama. The name gained popularity among Hindus, especially in North India, due to its association with the divine figure of Lord Rama.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who have borne the name Raghav. One of the earliest known was Raghav Bhatt, a renowned Sanskrit scholar and poet who lived in the 17th century. He was the author of the famous poetic work 'Shringara Shataka'.
Another prominent figure with the name Raghav was Raghav Chandra, a 19th-century Indian mathematician and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and was responsible for establishing several observatories in India.
In the realm of literature, Raghav Chetan was a renowned Hindi poet and writer who lived in the 20th century (1915-1994). He was widely acclaimed for his poetry collections, such as 'Gunjan' and 'Mukta', and received several prestigious awards for his literary contributions.
Raghav Chettar was an Indian freedom fighter and social reformer who played a crucial role in the Indian independence movement during the early 20th century (1888-1953). He was actively involved in the non-cooperation movement and worked towards the upliftment of the underprivileged sections of society.
In more recent times, Raghav Rajan was an Indian-American economist and the former governor of the Reserve Bank of India (1963-). He is widely regarded as one of the world's foremost experts on international finance and has been an influential voice in global economic policy-making.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals who have borne the name Raghav throughout history, showcasing its rich cultural heritage and significance in various fields.
People
Raghav + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Raghav as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Raghav: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Raghav?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,235 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Raghav 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 277,534 US residents.
Is Raghav a common name?
We classify Raghav as "Rare". It ranks above 91.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,248 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Raghav most popular?
The single biggest year for Raghav was 2024, when 71 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Raghav is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Raghav a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Raghav 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.