Shaft
An English word referring to a cylindrical support or shaft.
Name Census estimates that about 95 living Americans carry the first name Shaft. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Shaft today is around 50 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shaft births was 1972 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shaft. 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 Shaft. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
95
~ 1 in 3,607,940 Americans
Peak year
1972
32 babies that year
Average age
50
years old
1996 SSA rank
#8,841
Tracked since 1971
Popularity
Shaft: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shaft from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 85 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shaft 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 Shaft during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shafts live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. North Carolina, Texas, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Shaft, while Louisiana, Texas, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 6 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shaft
The name Shaft has its origins in the Old English word "sceaft," which means a shaft or a pole. It likely began as a descriptive name referring to someone who worked with long, cylindrical objects like spears, arrows, or shafts of light. Over time, the name evolved into its modern spelling.
In the Middle Ages, the name Shaft appeared in various historical records and documents. One of the earliest recorded instances is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a landowner named Sceftan is mentioned. This suggests that Shaft or similar spellings were in use as early as the 11th century in England.
The name Shaft also has some literary references. In the epic poem "Beowulf," written between the 8th and 11th centuries, there is a character named Sceft, which is believed to be a variation of the name Shaft. This indicates that the name had gained recognition and usage in Anglo-Saxon literature.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Shaft. One of the earliest recorded was Shaft of Battersea, a 12th-century English monk and chronicler who wrote about the life of St. Thomas Becket (1118-1170).
In the 16th century, Shaft Bullock (1520-1578) was an English politician and Member of Parliament known for his involvement in the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots.
During the 17th century, Shaft Jefferies (1635-1702) was an English politician and judge who served as Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales.
In the 18th century, Shaft Wilson (1714-1782) was a Scottish military officer and diplomat who served as the Governor of Gibraltar.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the name Shaft was John Shaft, the fictional character portrayed by Richard Roundtree in the 1971 blaxploitation film "Shaft" and its sequels.
While the name Shaft is not as common today as it once was, it has a rich history that spans centuries and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including monks, politicians, military officers, and even a iconic fictional character.
People
Shaft + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shaft 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
Shaft: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shaft?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 95 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shaft 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 3,607,940 US residents.
Is Shaft a common name?
We classify Shaft as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 103 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shaft most popular?
The single biggest year for Shaft was 1972, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shaft is about 50 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 Shaft in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shaft a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shaft 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 Shaft still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shaft 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 Shaft 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 have the name Shaft?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.