Sairah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "traveler" or "journey".
Name Census estimates that about 191 living Americans carry the first name Sairah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Sairah today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sairah births was 2003 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sairah. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Sairah with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
191
~ 1 in 1,794,525 Americans
Peak year
2003
11 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,110
Tracked since 1985
Census
Sairah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 238 people with the first name Sairah, which placed it at #34,342 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#34,342
National first-name rank
People counted
238
238 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
50.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sairah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sairah is Asian/Pacific Islander at 50.8%. The next largest groups are White (18.1%) and Hispanic (16.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Sairah described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Sairah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander50.8% · 121
- White18.1% · 43
- Hispanic or Latino16.4% · 39
- Two or more races8.4% · 20
- Black or African American6.3% · 15
Popularity
Sairah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sairah from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 63 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Sairah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sairah 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 Sairah 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 Sairah
The name Sairah has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, with roots dating back to the 7th century AD during the rise of Islam. It is derived from the Arabic word "sa'ir," which means "wayfarer" or "traveler." The name carries connotations of adventure, exploration, and a journey through life.
In the early days of Islam, the name Sairah gained popularity as a symbol of the spiritual journey and quest for knowledge that was highly valued in the religion. It was often given to girls as a reminder of the importance of seeking wisdom and following the path of righteousness.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Sairah can be found in the works of renowned Islamic scholars and poets from the 9th and 10th centuries. They often used the name as a metaphor for the soul's journey towards enlightenment and spiritual growth.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Sairah. One of the earliest examples is Sairah bint Husayn (born around 680 AD), who was a revered scholar and poet in the early Islamic era. She was renowned for her vast knowledge and her contributions to the preservation of Arabic literature and culture.
Another prominent figure with the name Sairah was Sairah al-Andalusiyyah (born around 1180 AD), a renowned Andalusian poet and philosopher. Her works explored themes of love, spirituality, and the human condition, and she was widely celebrated for her eloquence and deep insight.
In the 16th century, Sairah Begum (born around 1550 AD) was a powerful and influential figure in the Mughal Empire of India. As the wife of Emperor Akbar, she played a significant role in shaping the cultural and intellectual landscape of the empire, advocating for the advancement of women's education and rights.
During the 19th century, Sairah Ismat (born around 1835 AD) was a celebrated Egyptian writer and activist. She was a pioneer in the field of feminist literature and used her writings to challenge societal norms and advocate for women's rights and empowerment.
In more recent times, Sairah Ramadan (born in 1954) is a renowned Egyptian author and academic. Her novels and literary works have explored themes of identity, cultural heritage, and the experiences of women in the Middle East, earning her critical acclaim and numerous awards.
The name Sairah continues to be a popular choice across various cultures and regions, resonating with its rich historical significance and symbolism of a life journey filled with exploration, growth, and the pursuit of knowledge and enlightenment.
People
Sairah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sairah 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
Sairah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sairah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 191 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sairah 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 1,794,525 US residents.
Is Sairah a common name?
We classify Sairah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 73.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 195 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sairah most popular?
The single biggest year for Sairah was 2003, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sairah is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sairah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 238 people with the name Sairah, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #34,342 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Sairah in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Sairah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sairah leans strongly female. 244 people counted with this name were female (98.4%), compared with 4 male bearers (1.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Sairah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sairah is Asian/Pacific Islander at 50.8%. The next largest groups are White (18.1%) and Hispanic (16.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Sairah most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Sairah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.8% (121 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Sairah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sairah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sairah 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 Sairah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sairah 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 Sairah 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.
How many people are named Sairah?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.