Yousaf
An Arabic masculine name meaning "the increaser" or "he will increase".
Name Census estimates that about 225 living Americans carry the first name Yousaf. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yousaf today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yousaf births was 2023 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yousaf. 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.
People living today
225
~ 1 in 1,523,353 Americans
Peak year
2023
20 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,799
Tracked since 1993
Popularity
Yousaf: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yousaf from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 110 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Yousaf remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yousaf 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 Yousaf during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yousafs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. New York, California, Texas recorded the most babies named Yousaf, while Texas, California, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Yousaf
Yousaf is a masculine given name derived from the Arabic name Yusuf, which itself is the Arabic form of the Hebrew name Joseph. The name traces its origins back to ancient Semitic languages, with the Hebrew root "yasaf" meaning "to add" or "to increase."
The name Yusuf appears in the Quran as the name of the prophet Joseph, son of Jacob. The story of Joseph is recounted in detail in the 12th chapter of the Quran, describing his trials, tribulations, and eventual rise to a position of power in Egypt. This account has made the name Yusuf and its variants popular among Muslims around the world.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Yousaf can be found in the writings of the 13th-century Persian poet Jalaluddin Rumi, who mentions a Sufi saint named Yousaf al-Hamadani in his poetic works. This suggests that the variant spelling Yousaf was already in use by that time in parts of the Muslim world.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Yousaf. One of the most famous was Yousaf Khan Hotaki (1672-1738), an Afghan military leader who briefly ruled Persia from 1722 to 1725 after overthrowing the Safavid dynasty. His reign, though short-lived, marked a significant period in the history of the region.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Yousaf Raza Gillani (born 1952), a Pakistani politician who served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan from 2008 to 2012. His tenure was marked by various political challenges and ultimately ended with his disqualification by the Supreme Court.
In literature, Yousaf Idris (1927-1991) was an influential Egyptian writer and playwright. His works explored social and political themes, and he is considered one of the pioneers of the modern Arabic short story genre.
The name Yousaf has also been borne by several religious figures, including Yousaf al-Nabhani (1849-1932), a prominent Islamic scholar and the founder of the Nabhani movement in Syria and Lebanon.
Lastly, Yousaf Salah Uddin (born 1935) is a renowned Indian poet and writer who has made significant contributions to Urdu literature. His works have explored themes of love, spirituality, and social commentary, earning him numerous honors and awards.
People
Yousaf + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yousaf 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
Yousaf: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yousaf?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 225 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yousaf 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 1,523,353 US residents.
Is Yousaf a common name?
We classify Yousaf as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 227 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yousaf most popular?
The single biggest year for Yousaf was 2023, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yousaf is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Yousaf a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yousaf 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.
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.