Suman
A Hindu feminine given name deriving from Sanskrit meaning "flower garland".
Name Census estimates that about 71 living Americans carry the first name Suman. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 86.3% of registrations being female. The average person named Suman today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Suman births was 1999 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Suman. 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 Suman with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Suman. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
71
~ 1 in 4,827,526 Americans
Peak year
1999
11 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2013 SSA rank
#13,802
Tracked since 1985
Census
Suman in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 3,122 people with the first name Suman, which placed it at #5,489 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
#5,489
National first-name rank
People counted
3.1K
3,122 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
95.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Suman
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Suman is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.8%. The next largest groups are White (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Suman 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 Suman at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.8% · 2,991
- White1.9% · 58
- Two or more races1.1% · 35
- Black or African American0.6% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino0.3% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 9
Gender
Gender distribution for Suman
Suman leans heavily female at 86.3% of total registrations, but 10 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Suman as a male name
- Ranked #13,802 in 2013
- 5 male births in 2013
- Peak: 1988 (5 births)
Suman as a female name
- Ranked #17,363 in 2007
- 6 female births in 2007
- Peak: 1999 (11 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Suman on both sides of the split. Of the 3,129 people counted with this name, 1,499 were male (47.9%) and 1,630 were female (52.1%).
Popularity
Suman: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Suman from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 39 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
Suman 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 Suman during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Suman
The given name Suman has its origins in Sanskrit, an ancient language of the Indian subcontinent. The word "Suman" is derived from the Sanskrit term "su-manas," which means "good heart" or "good mind." This name has been in use for centuries across various cultures and regions in South Asia.
In Hindu mythology, Suman is also the name of a sacred flower, often associated with divine qualities such as purity and beauty. The Suman flower is frequently mentioned in ancient Hindu texts and scriptures, giving the name a deeper symbolic significance.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Suman can be found in the Mahabharata, a revered Hindu epic dating back to around the 8th century BCE. In this ancient text, Suman is mentioned as the name of a sage or rishi, reflecting the name's association with wisdom and spiritual enlightenment.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Suman. One such figure was Suman Kalyanpur (1937-2009), an Indian classical vocalist celebrated for her contributions to Hindustani music. Another notable individual was Suman Pokhrel (1967-2021), a Nepali conservationist and environmentalist who dedicated her life to protecting the country's natural resources.
In the realm of literature, Suman Gangopadhyay (1934-2011) was a renowned Bengali writer and novelist from India. His works exploring social issues and human relationships earned him numerous accolades, including the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award.
The name Suman has also been carried by figures in the world of sports. Suman Rawat (born 1972) is a former Indian cricketer who represented the national team in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Additionally, Suman Kundu (born 1966) is a former Indian football player who played as a striker for various clubs and the national team.
Another notable individual with the name Suman is Suman Kalinga (1998-2021), an Indian student activist known for her advocacy work and her efforts to raise awareness about climate change and environmental issues.
The name Suman has a rich cultural heritage and has been bestowed upon individuals from various walks of life, reflecting its underlying meaning of a "good heart" and "good mind." Its Sanskrit roots and historical references in ancient texts further add to the name's significance and enduring appeal across generations.
People
Suman + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Suman 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
Suman: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Suman?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 71 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Suman 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 4,827,526 US residents.
Is Suman a common name?
We classify Suman as "Very Rare". It ranks above 59.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 73 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Suman most popular?
The single biggest year for Suman was 1999, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Suman is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Suman in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 3,122 people with the name Suman, or 1.03 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #5,489 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 Suman 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 Suman?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Suman on both sides of the split. Of the 3,129 people counted with this name, 1,499 were male (47.9%) and 1,630 were female (52.1%). 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 Suman?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Suman is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.8%. The next largest groups are White (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Suman most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Suman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.8% (2,991 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 Suman in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Suman a female name?
Yes, 86.3% of people registered as Suman 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 Suman still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Suman 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 Suman 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 share the name Suman?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.