Shalisa
A feminine name of uncertain origin, potentially meaning "attractive" or "invincible."
Name Census estimates that about 817 living Americans carry the first name Shalisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Shalisa today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shalisa births was 1989 (65 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shalisa. 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.
People living today
817
~ 1 in 419,528 Americans
Peak year
1989
65 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2010 SSA rank
#19,390
Tracked since 1967
Census
Shalisa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 692 people with the first name Shalisa, which placed it at #16,339 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
#16,339
National first-name rank
People counted
692
692 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
66.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shalisa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shalisa is Black at 66.2%. The next largest groups are White (17.5%) and Two or More Races (6.9%). 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 Shalisa 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 Shalisa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American66.2% · 458
- White17.5% · 121
- Two or more races6.9% · 48
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 47
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 8
Popularity
Shalisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shalisa from the 1960s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 326 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shalisa 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 Shalisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shalisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, Texas, Illinois recorded the most babies named Shalisa, while Virginia, Michigan, Ohio recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shalisa
The name Shalisa has its roots in the Sanskrit language, originating from the Indian subcontinent during ancient times. It is believed to be derived from the Sanskrit word "shalishtha," which means "most excellent" or "supreme." The name's earliest recorded usage can be traced back to ancient Hindu texts and scriptures, where it was often associated with divine beings or celestial figures.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, one of the longest and most revered Sanskrit texts, there is a mention of a character named Shalisa, who was a wise and virtuous sage. This ancient reference suggests that the name has been in use for several centuries, if not millennia, in the Indian subcontinent.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Shalisa. One of the earliest recorded instances is Shalisa Devi, a 12th-century Hindu mystic and poet from the Radha region of present-day West Bengal, India. Her compositions, known as "Shalisa Pad," were deeply spiritual and celebrated the divine love between the deities Radha and Krishna.
Another prominent figure was Shalisa Khan, a 16th-century Mughal empress and the chief consort of Emperor Akbar. She was renowned for her beauty, intelligence, and influential role in the Mughal court during Akbar's reign.
In the realm of literature, Shalisa Ghose was a renowned Bengali writer and social reformer from the 19th century. Born in 1836, she was a pioneer in advocating for women's education and social progress in Bengal.
Moving into the 20th century, Shalisa Khatun was a celebrated folk singer and musician from Bangladesh, known for her captivating renditions of traditional Baul songs. She was awarded the prestigious Ekushey Padak, the highest civilian honor in Bangladesh, for her contributions to music and culture.
Another noteworthy figure was Shalisa Banerjee, an Indian freedom fighter and social activist from the early 20th century. She played a significant role in the Indian independence movement and worked tirelessly for the upliftment of women and underprivileged communities.
While the name Shalisa has its origins in South Asia, it has transcended geographical boundaries and gained recognition in various parts of the world, with individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds embracing this name and its rich heritage.
People
Shalisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shalisa 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
Shalisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shalisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 817 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shalisa 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 419,528 US residents.
Is Shalisa a common name?
We classify Shalisa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 863 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shalisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Shalisa was 1989, when 65 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shalisa is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Shalisa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 692 people with the name Shalisa, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,339 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 Shalisa 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 Shalisa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shalisa appears almost entirely female. Of the 690 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Shalisa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shalisa is Black at 66.2%. The next largest groups are White (17.5%) and Two or More Races (6.9%). 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 Shalisa most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Shalisa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.2% (458 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 Shalisa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shalisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shalisa 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 Shalisa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shalisa 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 Shalisa 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 Shalisa?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the name Shalisa at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.