Shivam
A masculine given name of Hindu origin meaning "Lord Shiva."
Name Census estimates that about 1,510 living Americans carry the first name Shivam. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Shivam today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shivam births was 1998 (94 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shivam. 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 Shivam with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.5K
~ 1 in 226,990 Americans
Peak year
1998
94 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,667
Tracked since 1986
Census
Shivam in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,024 people with the first name Shivam, which placed it at #7,512 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
#7,512
National first-name rank
People counted
2.0K
2,024 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
93.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shivam
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shivam is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Black (1.2%). 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 Shivam 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 Shivam at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander93.5% · 1,892
- White3.0% · 61
- Black or African American1.2% · 25
- Two or more races1.0% · 21
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 12
Popularity
Shivam: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shivam 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 534 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shivam 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 Shivam during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shivams live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. California, New Jersey, Illinois recorded the most babies named Shivam, while Michigan, Florida, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 87 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shivam
The name Shivam is of Sanskrit origin and is widely used in the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the words "Shiva" and "Rama," which are names of Hindu deities. Shiva is one of the principal deities in Hinduism, representing the cosmic force of destruction and regeneration, while Rama is the seventh avatar of the god Vishnu and the protagonist of the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana.
The name Shivam first appeared in ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, such as the Vedas and Puranas, where it was associated with the divine and spiritual realm. It was often used as a name for children born in devout Hindu families, with the belief that it would bless them with the virtues and qualities of the gods it represents.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Shivam was Shivam Tirth, a renowned Hindu sage and scholar who lived in the 8th century CE. He was known for his extensive knowledge of the Vedas and his contributions to the field of Hindu philosophy.
In the 12th century, Shivam Sundara was a celebrated poet and philosopher from the Karnataka region of India. His works, written in the Kannada language, explored themes of spirituality, love, and human nature.
During the 16th century, Shivam Bhushan was a prominent figure in the Mughal court of Emperor Akbar. He was a skilled diplomat and advisor, known for his wisdom and strategic thinking.
In more recent times, Shivam Prasad Gupta (1896-1977) was an Indian independence activist and politician who played a significant role in India's struggle for freedom from British rule. He served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India, which drafted the country's constitution.
Another notable individual with the name Shivam was Shivam Dube (1936-2022), an acclaimed Indian classical vocalist and Hindustani music maestro. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, one of India's highest civilian honors, for his contributions to the field of music.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Shivam, showcasing its long-standing presence and significance in Indian culture and tradition.
People
Shivam + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shivam 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
Shivam: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shivam?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,510 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shivam 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 226,990 US residents.
Is Shivam a common name?
We classify Shivam as "Rare". It ranks above 92.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,532 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shivam most popular?
The single biggest year for Shivam was 1998, when 94 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shivam is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Shivam in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,024 people with the name Shivam, or 0.67 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,512 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 Shivam 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 Shivam?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shivam appears almost entirely male. Of the 2,025 people counted with this name, 99.3% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Shivam?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shivam is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Black (1.2%). 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 Shivam most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Shivam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (1,892 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 Shivam in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shivam a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shivam 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 Shivam still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shivam 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 Shivam 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 Shivam?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.