Reisha
A feminine Arabic name meaning "soft wind" or "light breeze".
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the first name Reisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Reisha today is around 45 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Reisha births was 1976 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Reisha. 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
125
~ 1 in 2,742,035 Americans
Peak year
1976
11 babies that year
Average age
45
years old
1992 SSA rank
#14,974
Tracked since 1965
Popularity
Reisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Reisha from the 1960s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 57 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Reisha remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Reisha 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 Reisha 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 Reisha
The name Reisha has its origins in the Middle Eastern and South Asian regions, tracing back to ancient Sanskrit and Arabic roots. In Sanskrit, the word "Rishi" refers to a seer, sage, or enlightened being, while in Arabic, "Rasha" means dew or rain drops.
This name's earliest known use can be traced back to the 7th century CE, when it was recorded in ancient Islamic texts and historical records of the Arabian Peninsula. During this era, the name was often given to individuals who were considered wise, learned, or spiritually inclined.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Reisha was Reisha al-Basri, a renowned Islamic scholar and mystic who lived in the 8th century CE. He was known for his profound teachings on Sufism and was highly respected within the Islamic scholarly community.
In the 11th century CE, there was a notable Persian poet and philosopher named Reisha al-Din Nizam al-Mulk, who served as the vizier (prime minister) of the Seljuk Empire. His works and writings had a significant impact on the intellectual and literary landscape of the time.
Moving forward to the 16th century, Reisha Begum was a prominent figure in the Mughal Empire of South Asia. She was the daughter of Emperor Akbar and played a influential role in the court, known for her patronage of the arts and her intellectual pursuits.
In more recent history, Reisha Khaled was a renowned Egyptian feminist and activist who fought for women's rights and gender equality in the early 20th century. Born in 1897, she was a pioneering figure in the Arab world and inspired countless women to advocate for their rights and freedoms.
Lastly, Reisha Taha was a celebrated Iraqi artist and sculptor who lived from 1924 to 2011. Her works, often inspired by ancient Mesopotamian and Islamic motifs, gained international recognition and were exhibited in various prestigious galleries and museums around the world.
People
Reisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Reisha 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
Reisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Reisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 125 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Reisha 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 2,742,035 US residents.
Is Reisha a common name?
We classify Reisha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 67.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 135 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Reisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Reisha was 1976, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Reisha is about 45 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Reisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Reisha 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.
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.