Wassim
Of Arabic origin, meaning "attractive, handsome, graceful".
Name Census estimates that about 281 living Americans carry the first name Wassim. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Wassim today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wassim births was 2019 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wassim. 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 Wassim with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
281
~ 1 in 1,219,766 Americans
Peak year
2019
22 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,907
Tracked since 1984
Census
Wassim in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 646 people with the first name Wassim, which placed it at #17,193 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
#17,193
National first-name rank
People counted
646
646 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
93.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wassim
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wassim is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Wassim 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 Wassim at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 605
- Two or more races2.6% · 17
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 10
- Black or African American1.4% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 5
Popularity
Wassim: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wassim from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 128 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Wassim remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Wassim 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 Wassim 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 Wassim
The name Wassim is of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "wasama," which means "to be marked" or "to have a distinguishing mark." This name has its roots in the Middle Eastern region and is believed to have originated during the medieval Islamic period.
During the 9th century, the name Wassim gained prominence in various Islamic texts and historical records. It was often associated with individuals who possessed unique physical characteristics or exceptional qualities that set them apart from others. In some instances, the name was given to children born with birthmarks or distinctive features.
One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the name Wassim was a renowned Islamic scholar and poet, Wassim ibn al-Qasim, who lived during the 10th century in present-day Iraq. He was renowned for his contributions to Arabic literature and his expertise in Islamic jurisprudence.
In the 12th century, Wassim al-Din, a prominent Islamic philosopher and theologian, gained recognition for his works on metaphysics and ethics. He is often cited as a significant figure in the development of Islamic thought during the medieval period.
During the Ottoman Empire, the name Wassim was associated with several influential figures. Wassim Pasha, an Ottoman military commander and statesman, played a crucial role in the expansion and administration of the empire in the 16th century.
In the 19th century, Wassim al-Khalidi, a renowned Palestinian historian and scholar, made significant contributions to the preservation and documentation of Arab history and culture. His extensive works on the history of Jerusalem and the Palestinian region are highly regarded.
Another notable figure bearing the name Wassim was Wassim Amin, an Egyptian writer and journalist who lived during the early 20th century. He was a vocal advocate for women's rights and social reform in Egypt and the broader Arab world.
Throughout history, the name Wassim has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including scholars, artists, politicians, and military leaders. While its usage has been more prevalent in the Arab world, the name has also gained recognition in other regions influenced by Arabic culture and language.
People
Wassim + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wassim 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
Wassim: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wassim?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 281 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wassim 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 1,219,766 US residents.
Is Wassim a common name?
We classify Wassim as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 284 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wassim most popular?
The single biggest year for Wassim was 2019, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wassim 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 Wassim in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 646 people with the name Wassim, or 0.21 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,193 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 Wassim 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 Wassim?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wassim appears almost entirely male. Of the 647 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 Wassim?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wassim is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Wassim most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Wassim in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (605 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 Wassim in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wassim a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wassim 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 Wassim still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wassim 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 Wassim 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 common is the name Wassim?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.