Utkarsh
A masculine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "excellence" or "height".
Name Census estimates that about 43 living Americans carry the first name Utkarsh. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Utkarsh today is around 16 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Utkarsh births was 2002 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Utkarsh. 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 Utkarsh with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Utkarsh. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
43
~ 1 in 7,971,031 Americans
Peak year
2002
6 babies that year
Average age
16
years old
2022 SSA rank
#12,208
Tracked since 1998
Census
Utkarsh in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 525 people with the first name Utkarsh, which placed it at #19,901 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
#19,901
National first-name rank
People counted
525
525 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
94.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Utkarsh
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Utkarsh is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander94.5% · 496
- White3.0% · 16
- Black or African American0.8% · 4
- Two or more races0.8% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.4% · 2
Popularity
Utkarsh: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Utkarsh from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 16 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Utkarsh remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh
The name Utkarsh has its origins in the Sanskrit language of ancient India. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Utkarsha," which means "excellence" or "superiority." The name is believed to have originated around the 5th century BCE during the Vedic period of Indian history.
In ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, the word "Utkarsha" is often used to signify the highest state of spiritual attainment or the ultimate goal of human existence. The name Utkarsh, therefore, carries connotations of aspiration, achievement, and the pursuit of excellence.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Utkarsh can be found in the Mahabharata, the ancient Indian epic composed between the 8th and 9th centuries BCE. In the epic, Utkarsh is mentioned as the name of a warrior who fought alongside the Pandava prince Arjuna during the great Kurukshetra war.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Utkarsh. One of the most prominent was Utkarsh Arya (995-1063 CE), a renowned Indian mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of trigonometry and the study of celestial movements.
Another notable bearer of the name was Utkarsh Mishra (1548-1624 CE), a revered Hindu scholar and philosopher who wrote extensively on the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy. His works, such as the "Utkarsha-Vidya," were highly influential in shaping the intellectual discourse of his time.
In the 16th century, Utkarsh Singh (1532-1597 CE) was a celebrated warrior and military commander who served under the Mughal Emperor Akbar. His bravery and strategic acumen earned him a place in the annals of Mughal history.
More recently, Utkarsh Ambudkar (born 1984) is an American actor and rapper of Indian descent who has appeared in various television shows and films, including "Pitch Perfect" and "The Mindy Project."
Utkarsh Pandey (born 1991) is an Indian cricketer who has represented the Indian national team in various formats of the game, including Test matches and One Day Internationals.
The name Utkarsh continues to be popular among Indian families, particularly those with roots in the northern and central regions of the country. It serves as a reminder of the rich cultural heritage and literary traditions of ancient India, while also embodying aspirations of excellence and achievement.
People
Utkarsh + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Utkarsh as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with U
Other first names starting with U with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Utkarsh: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Utkarsh?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 43 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Utkarsh 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 7,971,031 US residents.
Is Utkarsh a common name?
We classify Utkarsh as "Very Rare". It ranks above 52.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 43 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Utkarsh most popular?
The single biggest year for Utkarsh was 2002, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Utkarsh is about 16 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Utkarsh in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 525 people with the name Utkarsh, or 0.17 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #19,901 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 Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Utkarsh appears almost entirely male. Of the 523 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Utkarsh?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Utkarsh is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Utkarsh most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Utkarsh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (496 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 Utkarsh in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Utkarsh a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh 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 Utkarsh as a first name?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.