Zinda
Of Persian origin, a name meaning "life" or "living".
Name Census estimates that about 24 living Americans carry the first name Zinda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zinda today is around 65 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zinda births was 1963 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zinda. 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 Zinda. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
24
~ 1 in 14,281,431 Americans
Peak year
1963
8 babies that year
Average age
65
years old
1967 SSA rank
#7,849
Tracked since 1951
Census
Zinda in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 111 people with the first name Zinda, which placed it at #51,800 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
#51,800
National first-name rank
People counted
111
111 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
64.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zinda
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zinda is White at 64.9%. The next largest groups are Black (27.9%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Zinda 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 Zinda at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.9% · 72
- Black or African American27.9% · 31
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Popularity
Zinda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zinda from the 1950s through to the 1960s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 24 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
Zinda 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 Zinda 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 Zinda
The name Zinda is believed to have originated from the Persian language, which is a member of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European language family. It is thought to have emerged during the ancient Persian Empire, which ruled over a vast territory spanning from modern-day Iran to parts of Central Asia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean region between the 6th century BCE and the 7th century CE.
Zinda is derived from the Persian word "zindah," which means "alive" or "living." This suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon individuals to symbolize vitality, longevity, or a vibrant spirit. Variations of the name's spelling include Zenda, Zindah, and Zindeh.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Zinda can be found in the epic Persian poem Shahnameh, which was written by the renowned poet Ferdowsi in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. The poem mentions a character named Zinda-Razm, which translates to "Living in Battle" or "Alive in Battle."
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Zinda. One of the earliest examples is Zinda Shah Madar (1050-1115), a famous Sufi saint and mystic who lived in the region of modern-day Uzbekistan. His mausoleum, known as the Zinda Shah Madar Complex, is a renowned architectural and spiritual site in Samarkand.
Another prominent figure was Zinda Kalami (1368-1459), a renowned Persian poet and scholar who was a contemporary of the Timurid dynasty. His works, including the collection of poems titled "Diwan-e-Zinda Kalami," were highly influential in the Persian literary tradition.
In the 16th century, Zinda Khan (1532-1592) was a powerful ruler of the Arghun dynasty, which ruled over parts of present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. He is credited with establishing a strong centralized government and promoting cultural and economic development in his realm.
Moving forward in time, Zinda Kali (1795-1857) was a famous Indian warrior and military leader who played a significant role in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British East India Company. She is celebrated for her bravery and unwavering resistance against colonial forces.
Finally, Zinda Kaul (1884-1965) was a prominent Indian poet, playwright, and social reformer from the state of Jammu and Kashmir. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of modern Kashmiri literature and played a crucial role in promoting the Kashmiri language and culture.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have carried the name Zinda throughout history, reflecting its rich cultural heritage and diverse geographical spread across various regions and time periods.
People
Zinda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zinda 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
Zinda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zinda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 24 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zinda 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 14,281,431 US residents.
Is Zinda a common name?
We classify Zinda as "Very Rare". It ranks above 43% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 31 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zinda most popular?
The single biggest year for Zinda was 1963, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zinda is about 65 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zinda in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 111 people with the name Zinda, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #51,800 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 Zinda 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 Zinda?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zinda leans strongly female. 118 people counted with this name were female (96.7%), compared with 4 male bearers (3.3%). 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 Zinda?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zinda is White at 64.9%. The next largest groups are Black (27.9%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Zinda most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Zinda in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.9% (72 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 Zinda in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zinda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zinda in the SSA data are female. 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 Zinda still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zinda 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 Zinda 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 many people are named Zinda?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.