Soufiane
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "to be wise" or "peaceful".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Soufiane. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Soufiane today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Soufiane births was 2011 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Soufiane. 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 Soufiane with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Soufiane. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2011
5 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2011 SSA rank
#14,053
Tracked since 2011
Census
Soufiane in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 280 people with the first name Soufiane, which placed it at #30,870 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
#30,870
National first-name rank
People counted
280
280 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
87.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Soufiane
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Soufiane is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Soufiane 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 Soufiane at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.5% · 245
- Black or African American5.0% · 14
- Two or more races3.9% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Popularity
Soufiane: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Soufiane 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 Soufiane 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 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Soufiane
The given name Soufiane is of Arabic origin, derived from the word "sufi" which refers to the Islamic mystical tradition of Sufism. Its roots can be traced back to the 8th century CE, during the golden age of Islamic civilization in the Middle East and North Africa.
The name Soufiane is believed to have been initially used among Sufi religious scholars and mystics who dedicated their lives to the spiritual and philosophical teachings of Islam. These individuals were known for their asceticism, devotion to prayer, and pursuit of inner purification.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Soufiane can be found in the writings of the renowned Sufi poet and scholar, Jalal al-Din Rumi, who lived in the 13th century CE. Rumi's works, such as the Masnavi, are considered masterpieces of Persian literature and have had a profound influence on Islamic mysticism.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Soufiane. One such figure was Soufiane Ibn Ali al-Miknasi, a 17th-century Moroccan scholar and writer who authored works on Islamic jurisprudence and theology. His contributions to the intellectual and religious landscape of his time were significant.
Another prominent Soufiane was Soufiane Ben Yedder, a 20th-century Algerian revolutionary and political leader who played a crucial role in the Algerian War of Independence against French colonial rule. He was born in 1912 and became a respected figure in the National Liberation Front (FLN) movement.
In the realm of literature, Soufiane Djilat, a contemporary Moroccan writer and poet, has garnered recognition for his works that explore themes of identity, exile, and the human condition. He was born in 1961 and has published several acclaimed collections of poetry and essays.
Another notable figure was Soufiane Ababri, a 19th-century Moroccan scholar and religious leader who made significant contributions to the study and interpretation of Islamic texts. He was born in 1824 and his teachings and writings continue to be influential in the region.
Soufiane Benzaza, a 21st-century French professional footballer of Moroccan descent, has also brought recognition to the name. Born in 1994, he currently plays as a midfielder for various clubs in Europe, showcasing his skills on the international stage.
People
Soufiane + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Soufiane 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
Soufiane: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Soufiane?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Soufiane 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Soufiane a common name?
We classify Soufiane as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Soufiane most popular?
The single biggest year for Soufiane was 2011, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Soufiane is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Soufiane in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 280 people with the name Soufiane, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #30,870 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 Soufiane 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 Soufiane?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Soufiane leans strongly male. 273 people counted with this name were male (98.2%), compared with 5 female bearers (1.8%). 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 Soufiane?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Soufiane is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Soufiane most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Soufiane in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.5% (245 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 Soufiane in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Soufiane a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Soufiane 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 Soufiane still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Soufiane 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 Soufiane 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 have Soufiane as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.