Rashiya
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "guided by God".
Name Census estimates that about 84 living Americans carry the first name Rashiya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rashiya today is around 16 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rashiya births was 2010 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rashiya. 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 Rashiya. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
84
~ 1 in 4,080,409 Americans
Peak year
2010
14 babies that year
Average age
16
years old
2015 SSA rank
#18,529
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Rashiya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rashiya from the 2000s through to the 2010s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 46 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
Rashiya 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 Rashiya 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 Rashiya
The name Rashiya is a feminine given name with roots in the Middle East and North Africa. Its origins can be traced back to the Arabic language, where it is derived from the word "rasha," meaning "to sprinkle or spray." This suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon girls with a connection to water, such as those born near rivers, oases, or coastal regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rashiya can be found in ancient Mesopotamian texts dating back to the 6th century BCE. These texts mention a woman named Rashiya who was a prominent figure in the court of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II. She is described as a skilled musician and dancer, renowned for her grace and talent.
In Islamic tradition, the name Rashiya is mentioned in the Hadith, a collection of sayings and teachings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad. According to these texts, Rashiya was the name of a woman who lived during the early days of Islam and was known for her wisdom and piety.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Rashiya. One of the earliest recorded examples is Rashiya al-Baghdadiya, a renowned 9th-century poet from Baghdad who was celebrated for her mastery of the Arabic language and her eloquent verses. Another famous Rashiya was Rashiya al-Qurashiya, a 10th-century scholar and jurist from Cordoba, Spain, who made significant contributions to Islamic jurisprudence.
In the realm of literature, Rashiya al-Andalusiya was a 12th-century Andalusian poet and writer whose works explored themes of love, spirituality, and the human condition. Her poetry was widely admired and has been preserved in various anthologies.
Moving forward in time, Rashiya al-Khalidiya was a 16th-century Ottoman princess and philanthropist who established numerous educational institutions and charitable foundations throughout the Ottoman Empire. She was celebrated for her generosity and commitment to supporting the arts and sciences.
While the name Rashiya has deep historical roots, it has also been borne by notable individuals in more recent times. One such example is Rashiya al-Rawi, a 20th-century Iraqi writer and activist who fought for women's rights and advocated for social and political reforms in her country.
People
Rashiya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rashiya 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
Rashiya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rashiya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 84 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rashiya 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 4,080,409 US residents.
Is Rashiya a common name?
We classify Rashiya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 62% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 85 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rashiya most popular?
The single biggest year for Rashiya was 2010, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rashiya is about 16 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 Rashiya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rashiya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rashiya 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 Rashiya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rashiya 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 Rashiya 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 Americans are named Rashiya?
Want to know how many people have the name Rashiya? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.