Shahwaiz
One with high rank or affluence.
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Shahwaiz. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Shahwaiz today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shahwaiz births was 2019 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shahwaiz. 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 Shahwaiz with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Shahwaiz. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
2019
6 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2019 SSA rank
#11,911
Tracked since 2019
Popularity
Shahwaiz: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Shahwaiz 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 Shahwaiz during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Shahwaiz
The given name Shahwaiz is of Persian origin and derived from the words "shah" meaning king or ruler, and "waiz" meaning preacher or orator. The name's origins can be traced back to the medieval period in the regions of modern-day Iran and Central Asia.
The earliest recorded use of the name Shahwaiz is found in historical texts from the 11th century, where it was mentioned as the name of a prominent Islamic scholar and preacher during the reign of the Seljuk Empire. This scholar, Shahwaiz al-Balkhi, was renowned for his eloquence and knowledge of Islamic theology.
In the 13th century, another notable figure with the name Shahwaiz was a Sufi mystic and poet from the city of Bukhara, in present-day Uzbekistan. His poetic works, which often explored themes of divine love and spiritual enlightenment, were widely celebrated during his lifetime and continue to be studied by scholars of Persian literature.
Throughout the centuries, the name Shahwaiz has been used by various individuals of Persian and Central Asian descent, particularly those with a connection to the Islamic faith or scholarly pursuits. Here are five notable individuals who bore this name:
1. Shahwaiz Khan (1608-1668), a Mughal military commander and governor who served under the emperors Jahangir and Shah Jahan in India.
2. Shahwaiz Khan Abbasid (1786-1858), a Persian poet and calligrapher from the Qajar dynasty, known for his mastery of the Nasta'liq script.
3. Shahwaiz Ahmad Khan (1868-1942), an Indian Muslim politician and writer who served as a member of the Imperial Legislative Council in British India.
4. Shahwaiz Adil (1917-1990), a renowned Pakistani artist and calligrapher, recognized for his contributions to the art of Islamic calligraphy.
5. Shahwaiz Hosseini (born 1965), an Iranian actor and filmmaker, best known for his roles in acclaimed movies such as "A Separation" and "The Salesman."
The name Shahwaiz has been widely used across various regions and cultures influenced by Persian language and Islamic traditions, often associated with individuals of scholarly or artistic pursuits, as well as those holding positions of power and authority.
People
Shahwaiz + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shahwaiz 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
Shahwaiz: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shahwaiz?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shahwaiz 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 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Shahwaiz a common name?
We classify Shahwaiz as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shahwaiz most popular?
The single biggest year for Shahwaiz was 2019, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shahwaiz is about 7 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 Shahwaiz in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shahwaiz a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shahwaiz 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 Shahwaiz still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shahwaiz 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 Shahwaiz 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 Shahwaiz?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Shahwaiz, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.