Sayf
A masculine Arabic name meaning "sword" or "scimitar".
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the first name Sayf. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Sayf today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sayf births was 2016 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sayf. 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 Sayf with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
139
~ 1 in 2,465,859 Americans
Peak year
2016
12 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,192
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Sayf: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sayf from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 65 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Sayf remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sayf 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 Sayf 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 Sayf
The name Sayf has its origins in the Arabic language and culture. It is derived from the Arabic word "sayf" which means "sword" or "blade". This name has been used in the Middle East and among Arab communities for centuries.
The earliest known reference to the name Sayf can be found in pre-Islamic Arabic literature, where it was used to describe warriors and their swords. In Islamic tradition, the name is mentioned in various historical texts and records, often associated with military leaders and soldiers known for their bravery and skill in battle.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Sayf was Sayf al-Dawlah al-Hamdani, an Arab ruler who founded the Hamdanid dynasty in northern Syria and Iraq in the 10th century AD. He was known for his military conquests and patronage of arts and literature.
Another notable figure was Sayf al-Din Qalawun, a Mamluk sultan of Egypt who ruled from 1279 to 1290 AD. He was a skilled military leader and played a significant role in defending Egypt against the Mongol invasions.
In the 13th century, Sayf al-Din al-Amidi was a prominent Islamic scholar and philosopher from modern-day Iraq. He made significant contributions to the field of logic and Islamic jurisprudence.
During the Ottoman Empire, Sayf al-Din Yakhshi was a renowned military commander who served under Sultan Selim I in the early 16th century. He played a crucial role in the Ottoman conquest of the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt and Syria.
In more recent history, Sayf al-Din al-Qassam was a Syrian Muslim scholar and resistance fighter who led an armed uprising against the British and French colonial powers in Palestine during the 1930s. He is revered as a nationalist hero in parts of the Arab world.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Sayf, reflecting its strong association with military prowess, leadership, and scholarly pursuits in the Arabic and Islamic spheres.
People
Sayf + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sayf 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
Sayf: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sayf?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 139 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sayf 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 2,465,859 US residents.
Is Sayf a common name?
We classify Sayf as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 140 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sayf most popular?
The single biggest year for Sayf was 2016, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sayf is about 11 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 Sayf in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sayf a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sayf 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 Sayf still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sayf 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 Sayf 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 people are called Sayf?
You can see how many people share the name Sayf on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.