Yussuf
A masculine name derived from the Hebrew root meaning "he will add".
Name Census estimates that about 222 living Americans carry the first name Yussuf. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yussuf today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yussuf births was 2010 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yussuf. 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
222
~ 1 in 1,543,938 Americans
Peak year
2010
20 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,832
Tracked since 2005
Popularity
Yussuf: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yussuf from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 135 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Yussuf remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yussuf 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 Yussuf during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yussufs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Yussuf
The name Yussuf is derived from the Arabic name Yusuf, which has its origins in the ancient Semitic languages. It is believed to be related to the Hebrew name Yosef, meaning "he will add" or "he will increase."
The name Yusuf appears prominently in the Quran, the holy book of Islam, as the name of the prophet and son of Jacob (also known as Ya'qub). The story of Yusuf, found in Chapter 12 (Surah Yusuf) of the Quran, is considered one of the most beautiful and detailed narratives in the scripture.
In the biblical tradition, the name Joseph is associated with the son of Jacob and Rachel, who was sold into slavery by his brothers but later rose to become a powerful vizier in Egypt. The name Joseph is also found in the Old Testament and is revered by Christians and Jews alike.
The earliest recorded use of the name Yussuf dates back to ancient times, with references found in various historical texts and religious scriptures. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Yusuf ibn Ya'qub, a prominent Muslim scholar who lived in the 8th century CE.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Yussuf or its variants:
1. Yusuf ibn Tashfin (c. 1009-1106), a Berber ruler who founded the Almoravid dynasty in North Africa and parts of Spain.
2. Yusuf I (1318-1395), the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1389 to 1395.
3. Yusuf Ismail (1563-1627), a Moroccan scholar and writer known for his contributions to Islamic literature.
4. Yusuf Khass Hajib (1019-1089), a renowned Turkic poet and writer who served as a vizier in the Seljuk Empire.
5. Yusuf Idris (1927-1991), an Egyptian novelist and playwright, considered one of the pioneers of modern Arabic literature.
While the name Yussuf has its roots in the Middle East and Islamic traditions, it has also been adopted and used in various cultural contexts around the world, reflecting the diverse and rich history of this ancient name.
People
Yussuf + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yussuf 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
Yussuf: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yussuf?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 222 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yussuf 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 1,543,938 US residents.
Is Yussuf a common name?
We classify Yussuf as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 224 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yussuf most popular?
The single biggest year for Yussuf was 2010, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yussuf is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Yussuf a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yussuf 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.