Rasheed
An Arabic masculine name meaning one who is rightly guided or who follows the straight path.
Name Census estimates that about 4,690 living Americans carry the first name Rasheed. It is a predominantly male name (99.3% of registrations). The average person named Rasheed today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rasheed births was 1995 (225 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rasheed. 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.
People living today
4.7K
~ 1 in 73,082 Americans
Peak year
1995
225 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,748
Tracked since 1968
Gender
Gender distribution for Rasheed
Out of the 4,836 babies given the name Rasheed since 1880, 99.3% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Rasheed as a male name
- Ranked #3,748 in 2024
- 30 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1995 (220 births)
Rasheed as a female name
- Ranked #15,169 in 1995
- 5 female births in 1995
- Peak: 1976 (10 births)
Popularity
Rasheed: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rasheed from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 1,514 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rasheed 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 Rasheed during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rasheeds live
The SSA's state-level files cover 19 states and territories. Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey recorded the most babies named Rasheed, while Wisconsin, Missouri, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 167 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rasheed
The name Rasheed finds its origins in the Arabic language and culture. It is derived from the Arabic root word "rashada," which means "to be rightly guided" or "to follow the right path." The name is believed to have emerged during the early Islamic era, around the 7th century CE, in the Arabian Peninsula.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rasheed can be found in the context of Islamic literature and history. In the famous collection of hadiths (sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad), there is a reference to a companion named Rasheed ibn Sa'd, who lived during the time of the Prophet Muhammad in the 7th century CE.
Throughout history, the name Rasheed has been associated with notable figures from various fields. One such figure was Al-Rasheed, the fifth Abbasid caliph who ruled from 786 to 809 CE. He was known for his patronage of arts, literature, and sciences, as well as his efforts in expanding the Abbasid empire.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Rasheed al-Din Sinan, also known as the "Old Man of the Mountain" (1135-1192 CE). He was the leader of the Nizari Ismaili sect and played a significant role in the Crusades, employing a group of highly skilled assassins known as the Hashashins.
In the literary realm, Rasheed Jahan (1605-1676 CE) was a renowned Urdu and Persian poet from the Mughal era. His poetic works, written under the pen name "Qudsi," are celebrated for their depth and elegance.
The name Rasheed has also been associated with notable figures in modern times. For example, Rasheed Wallace (born 1974 CE) is a former professional basketball player from the United States, known for his successful career in the NBA and winning a championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004.
Another notable figure was Rasheed Masood (1935-2017 CE), a Pakistani politician and former Chief Minister of the North-West Frontier Province (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). He played a significant role in shaping the political landscape of Pakistan during his career.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Rasheed
People
Rasheed + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rasheed 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
Rasheed: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rasheed?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4,690 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rasheed 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 73,082 US residents.
Is Rasheed a common name?
We classify Rasheed as "Rare". It ranks above 96.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,836 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rasheed most popular?
The single biggest year for Rasheed was 1995, when 225 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rasheed is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rasheed a male name?
Yes, 99.3% of people registered as Rasheed 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.