Yashir
An Arabic masculine name meaning "prosperous" or "wealthy".
Name Census estimates that about 12 living Americans carry the first name Yashir. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yashir today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yashir births was 2024 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yashir. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Yashir. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
12
~ 1 in 28,562,862 Americans
Peak year
2024
7 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,843
Tracked since 2005
Popularity
Yashir: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yashir from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 7 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yashir 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 Yashir 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 Yashir
The name Yashir is believed to have originated from the Arabic language, with its roots tracing back to the Middle East and North Africa regions. The earliest known usage of the name dates back to the 7th century AD, coinciding with the rise of Islam and the spread of Arabic culture across the region.
Yashir is derived from the Arabic word "yasir," which means "prosperous" or "wealthy." This suggests that the name was initially bestowed upon individuals with the hope of them leading a prosperous and successful life. Variations of the spelling include Yassir, Yaseer, and Yasir, all sharing a similar linguistic origin.
In ancient Arabic texts and historical records, the name Yashir appears occasionally, though its usage was not widespread. One of the earliest known references is found in the writings of the renowned 8th-century Arab poet and scholar, Abū Tammām, who mentions a man named Yashir in his poetry.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Yashir. One of the earliest recorded individuals was Yashir ibn 'Amr al-Sulami (born circa 680 AD), a prominent military leader and companion of the Prophet Muhammad. Another influential figure was Yashir al-Basri (699-783 AD), a renowned Islamic scholar and theologian from Basra, Iraq.
In the 10th century, Yashir al-Qadi (893-975 AD) was a prominent Arab mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of algebra and trigonometry. During the 12th century, Yashir al-Razi (1149-1209 AD) was a celebrated Persian physician and philosopher known for his medical treatises and philosophical works.
More recently, Yashir Arafat (1929-2004) was a Palestinian political leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who served as the President of the Palestinian National Authority from 1994 until his death in 2004. His efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state and his involvement in the Oslo Accords made him a prominent figure in the Middle East peace process.
While the name Yashir has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, it has since been adopted and used by various communities across the Middle East and North Africa, as well as by individuals of Arab descent living in other parts of the world.
People
Yashir + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yashir as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yashir: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yashir?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yashir 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 28,562,862 US residents.
Is Yashir a common name?
We classify Yashir as "Very Rare". It ranks above 32.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 12 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yashir most popular?
The single biggest year for Yashir was 2024, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yashir is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Yashir in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yashir a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yashir 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 Yashir still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yashir 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 Yashir 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Yashir as a first name?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.