Rashima
A feminine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "beam of light".
Name Census estimates that about 41 living Americans carry the first name Rashima. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rashima today is around 42 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rashima births was 1978 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rashima. 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 Rashima. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
41
~ 1 in 8,359,862 Americans
Peak year
1978
9 babies that year
Average age
42
years old
1993 SSA rank
#15,191
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Rashima: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rashima from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 21 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
Rashima 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 Rashima during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rashima
The name Rashima has its roots in Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that originated in the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Rashmi," which means "ray" or "beam of light." The name is believed to have first emerged during the Vedic period, which spanned from approximately 1500 BCE to 500 BCE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rashima can be found in the Rigveda, a collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns that is considered one of the oldest extant texts in the world. In the Rigveda, the name is associated with a goddess of light and radiance, reflecting its connection to the Sanskrit word "Rashmi."
Throughout history, the name Rashima has been borne by several notable individuals. One of the earliest known figures with this name was Rashima, a renowned scholar and poet who lived in the 7th century CE in the Gupta Empire. Her works, though largely lost to time, were celebrated for their lyrical beauty and profound insights.
In the 12th century, Rashima was the name of a princess from the Chola dynasty, which ruled over parts of present-day southern India and Sri Lanka. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her support for the construction of several magnificent temples that still stand today.
During the Mughal Empire, which ruled over large parts of the Indian subcontinent from the 16th to the 19th century, the name Rashima was borne by a celebrated courtesan and dancer. Her grace and talent were widely renowned, and she was a celebrated figure in the courts of several Mughal rulers.
In more recent times, Rashima was the name of a prominent Indian freedom fighter who participated in the non-violent resistance movement against British colonial rule in the early 20th century. She was imprisoned multiple times for her activism but remained committed to the cause of Indian independence.
Another notable figure with the name Rashima was a renowned Indian classical dancer and choreographer who lived in the latter half of the 20th century. Her contributions to the art form were widely recognized, and she received numerous accolades, including the prestigious Padma Bhushan, one of India's highest civilian honors.
People
Rashima + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rashima 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
Rashima: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rashima?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 41 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rashima 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 8,359,862 US residents.
Is Rashima a common name?
We classify Rashima as "Very Rare". It ranks above 51.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 44 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rashima most popular?
The single biggest year for Rashima was 1978, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rashima is about 42 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Rashima in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rashima a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rashima 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 Rashima still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rashima 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 Rashima 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Rashima?
Find out how many people have the name Rashima on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.