Saiid
Meaning "happy, fortunate" of Arabic origin.
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Saiid. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Saiid today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Saiid births was 2002 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Saiid. 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 Saiid. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
2002
5 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2016 SSA rank
#13,836
Tracked since 2002
Popularity
Saiid: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Saiid 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 5 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
Saiid 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 Saiid 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 Saiid
The name Saiid has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, and it can be traced back to the 7th century CE. It is derived from the Arabic word "saeed," which means "happy" or "fortunate." In some cases, the name is also spelled as "Saeed" or "Said."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Saiid can be found in Islamic literature, specifically in the Qur'an, where it is mentioned as an attribute of the Prophet Muhammad. The name gained popularity among Muslims as a result of its positive connotation and association with the Prophet.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the name Saiid. One of the earliest and most famous was Saiid ibn Abi Waqqas, a close companion of the Prophet Muhammad and one of the first Muslims to embrace Islam. He lived from around 594 to 670 CE and played a crucial role in the early spread of Islam.
Another famous bearer of the name was Saiid al-Andalusi, a renowned Muslim philosopher, mathematician, and scientist who lived in Cordoba, Spain, during the 11th century CE. He made significant contributions to the fields of astronomy, mathematics, and physics, and his works were widely studied in Europe during the Renaissance.
In the 13th century, Saiid al-Din al-Farghani, a Muslim astronomer and mathematician, gained recognition for his work on the celestial sphere and his treatise on the motion of the planets. His works had a significant impact on the development of astronomy in the Islamic world and beyond.
In the 19th century, Saiid Pasha, also known as Muhammad Saiid Pasha, was a prominent Ottoman statesman and reformer who served as the Wali (governor) of Egypt from 1854 to 1863. He is credited with initiating numerous modernization projects and reforms in Egypt, including the construction of the Suez Canal.
Another notable figure with the name Saiid was Saiid bin Sultan Al-Busaid, who ruled the Sultanate of Oman and Zanzibar from 1804 to 1856. He played a crucial role in expanding Omani influence in East Africa and establishing a powerful maritime empire in the region.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Saiid, reflecting its historical significance and cultural importance within the Arabic-speaking world and beyond.
People
Saiid + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Saiid as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Saiid: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Saiid?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Saiid 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Saiid a common name?
We classify Saiid as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Saiid most popular?
The single biggest year for Saiid was 2002, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Saiid is about 17 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 Saiid in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Saiid a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Saiid 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 Saiid still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Saiid 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 Saiid 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 Saiid?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.