Wasim
A masculine Arabic name meaning "prominent" or "accomplished".
Name Census estimates that about 179 living Americans carry the first name Wasim. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Wasim today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wasim births was 1999 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wasim. 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 Wasim with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
179
~ 1 in 1,914,829 Americans
Peak year
1999
11 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,814
Tracked since 1983
Census
Wasim in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 758 people with the first name Wasim, which placed it at #15,241 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
#15,241
National first-name rank
People counted
758
758 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
47.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wasim
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wasim is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.9%. The next largest groups are White (39.4%) and Black (7.5%). 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 Wasim 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 Wasim at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander47.9% · 363
- White39.4% · 299
- Black or African American7.5% · 57
- Two or more races3.2% · 24
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 3
Popularity
Wasim: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wasim from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 53 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Wasim remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Wasim 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 Wasim 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 Wasim
The name Wasim finds its origins in the Arabic language, with its roots tracing back to ancient times. It is derived from the Arabic word "wasim," which means "handsome" or "beautiful." This name was likely given to newborn boys as a way to wish them a life of beauty and grace.
In the early days of Islam, the name Wasim gained popularity among Arabs, particularly in the Middle Eastern region. It is believed to have been used as early as the 7th century AD, during the time of the Islamic Golden Age, when Arabic culture and literature flourished.
The name Wasim is not directly mentioned in religious scriptures or ancient texts, but its meaning and usage were likely influenced by the values and traditions of the time, which placed great importance on physical beauty and eloquence.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Wasim dates back to the 9th century AD, when a renowned Arab poet named Wasim ibn Ubayd al-Asadi lived. He was known for his eloquent verses and is considered one of the most influential poets of his era.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Wasim, including:
1. Wasim Akram (born 1966), a former Pakistani cricketer and captain, widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers in the history of the sport.
2. Wasim Sajjad (1941-2020), a renowned Pakistani diplomat and former Foreign Secretary of Pakistan.
3. Wasim Barelvi (1909-1976), a renowned Urdu poet and writer from British India, known for his contributions to Urdu literature.
4. Wasim Mukhtar (born 1971), a Pakistani film actor and director who has appeared in numerous Lollywood productions.
5. Wasim Akhtar (born 1949), a Pakistani writer and poet, known for his contributions to Urdu literature and his activism for human rights.
The name Wasim has transcended cultural boundaries and has been adopted by people of various backgrounds, while still retaining its Arabic roots and the essence of its meaning.
People
Wasim + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wasim as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wasim: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wasim?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 179 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wasim 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 1,914,829 US residents.
Is Wasim a common name?
We classify Wasim as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 182 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wasim most popular?
The single biggest year for Wasim was 1999, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wasim is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Wasim in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 758 people with the name Wasim, or 0.25 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,241 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 Wasim 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 Wasim?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wasim appears almost entirely male. Of the 755 people counted with this name, 99.1% 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 Wasim?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wasim is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.9%. The next largest groups are White (39.4%) and Black (7.5%). 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 Wasim most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Wasim in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.9% (363 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 Wasim in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wasim a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wasim 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 Wasim still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wasim 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 Wasim 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 Wasim?
Want to know how many Americans are named Wasim? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.