Rushun
Unisex name of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the Russian word for "Russian".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Rushun. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Rushun today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rushun births was 1977 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rushun. 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 Rushun. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1977
5 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
1977 SSA rank
#6,673
Tracked since 1977
Popularity
Rushun: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Rushun 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 Rushun during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Rushun
The given name Rushun has its origins in the ancient Persian language, with roots dating back to the 6th century BCE. It is believed to be derived from the Old Persian word "ruxšana," which translates to "shining" or "radiant." This name was popular among the nobility and ruling classes of the Persian Empire, particularly during the Achaemenid and Sassanid dynasties.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rushun can be found in the Avestan texts, the sacred scriptures of Zoroastrianism. These texts mention a figure named Rušan, who was a prominent priest and scholar during the reign of Darius the Great in the 5th century BCE.
Throughout the centuries, the name Rushun has been associated with various notable figures in Persian history and literature. One such figure was Rushun al-Adib, a renowned poet and scholar who lived during the 9th century CE in the city of Bukhara, which was part of the Abbasid Caliphate at the time. His works were highly influential in shaping the literary traditions of the region.
Another prominent figure bearing the name Rushun was Rushun al-Din Sinan, also known as the "Old Man of the Mountain." He was the leader of the Nizari Ismaili state, based in the mountains of present-day Iran and Syria, during the late 11th and early 12th centuries. Sinan was renowned for his strategic military tactics and his loyal band of followers, known as the Assassins.
In the realm of science and philosophy, the name Rushun was carried by Rushun al-Din al-Tusi, a Persian polymath who lived in the 13th century. Al-Tusi made significant contributions to various fields, including mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy, and was instrumental in the establishment of the Maragheh Observatory in present-day Iran.
Another notable figure with the name Rushun was Rushun Beg, a Timurid ruler who governed the region of Khwarezm (present-day Uzbekistan and parts of Kazakhstan) in the 15th century. He was known for his patronage of the arts and his efforts in promoting cultural and economic development in the region.
While the name Rushun has its roots in the Persian language and culture, it has also been adopted and adapted in other regions, such as Central Asia and parts of the Indian subcontinent, where it has taken on various spellings and pronunciations over time.
People
Rushun + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rushun 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
Rushun: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rushun?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rushun 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Rushun a common name?
We classify Rushun as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rushun most popular?
The single biggest year for Rushun was 1977, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rushun is about 46 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 Rushun in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rushun a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rushun 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.
Is Rushun still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rushun 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 Rushun 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 common is the name Rushun?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Rushun at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.