Zaim
A masculine Arabic name derived from the word "za'im", meaning "leader" or "chief".
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the first name Zaim. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zaim today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zaim births was 2024 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zaim. 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 Zaim with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
209
~ 1 in 1,639,973 Americans
Peak year
2024
15 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,161
Tracked since 1998
Census
Zaim in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 295 people with the first name Zaim, which placed it at #29,826 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
#29,826
National first-name rank
People counted
295
295 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
57.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zaim
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zaim is White at 57.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (16.3%) and Black (12.5%). 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 Zaim 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 Zaim at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White57.3% · 169
- Asian and Pacific Islander16.3% · 48
- Black or African American12.5% · 37
- Hispanic or Latino9.5% · 28
- Two or more races4.1% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 1
Popularity
Zaim: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zaim 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 89 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zaim remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zaim 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 Zaim 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 Zaim
The name Zaim originates from the Arabic language and has its roots in the Islamic culture. It is derived from the Arabic word "za'im," which means "leader" or "chief." The name gained prominence during the early Islamic era, particularly in the regions of the Middle East and North Africa.
In ancient times, the name Zaim was often associated with prominent figures in Islamic history, such as military commanders, religious scholars, and political leaders. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the writings of renowned Islamic historians, who documented the lives of influential individuals bearing this name.
One notable historical figure with the name Zaim was Zaim al-Dawla, a 10th-century Arab military commander who served under the Abbasid Caliphate. He played a crucial role in defending the city of Baghdad against invading forces and was renowned for his strategic prowess on the battlefield.
Another prominent individual with the name Zaim was Zaim al-Din Isfahani, a 12th-century Persian scholar and poet. He was highly regarded for his contributions to the field of literature and Islamic philosophy, and his works continue to be studied and celebrated by scholars today.
In the 13th century, Zaim al-Mulk Isfahani, a renowned Persian statesman and vizier, served under the Seljuk Empire. He was known for his diplomatic skills and played a pivotal role in maintaining stability and prosperity within the empire.
During the Ottoman Empire, the name Zaim was often associated with military leaders and provincial governors. One such figure was Zaim Pasha, a 16th-century Ottoman statesman and governor who held significant influence in various regions of the empire.
Another notable historical figure with the name Zaim was Zaim Efendi, an 18th-century Ottoman scholar and calligrapher. His exceptional calligraphic works were highly revered, and he is regarded as one of the most skilled calligraphers in Ottoman history.
While the name Zaim has its origins in the Arabic language and Islamic culture, it has also been adopted and used in various regions and cultures throughout history, reflecting the diverse influences and interactions between civilizations.
People
Zaim + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zaim as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zaim: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zaim?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 209 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zaim 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 1,639,973 US residents.
Is Zaim a common name?
We classify Zaim as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 211 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zaim most popular?
The single biggest year for Zaim was 2024, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zaim is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zaim in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 295 people with the name Zaim, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,826 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 Zaim 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 Zaim?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zaim leans strongly male. 290 people counted with this name were male (99.0%), compared with 3 female bearers (1.0%). 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 Zaim?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zaim is White at 57.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (16.3%) and Black (12.5%). 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 Zaim most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Zaim in the 2020 Census, accounting for 57.3% (169 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 Zaim in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zaim a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zaim 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 Zaim still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zaim 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 Zaim 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 Zaim?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Zaim at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.