Ziyun
A Chinese name meaning "purple cloud" or "purple mist".
Name Census estimates that about 11 living Americans carry the first name Ziyun. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ziyun today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ziyun births was 2005 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ziyun. 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 Ziyun. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
11
~ 1 in 31,159,485 Americans
Peak year
2005
6 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2009 SSA rank
#14,525
Tracked since 2005
Popularity
Ziyun: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Ziyun 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 Ziyun during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Ziyun
The name Ziyun has its origins in the Chinese language and culture. It is a relatively modern name that dates back to the late 20th century. The name is composed of two Chinese characters, "Zi" meaning "purple" and "Yun" meaning "cloud".
While the name itself does not have a long historical lineage, its component characters can be traced back to ancient Chinese literature and poetry. The color purple was associated with royalty and nobility in traditional Chinese culture, while clouds were often used as metaphors for transience and impermanence.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Ziyun was a Chinese singer and actress born in 1974. She rose to prominence in the 1990s and starred in several popular television dramas and films during her career.
Another notable figure with the name Ziyun was a Chinese writer and novelist born in 1980. She gained recognition for her works exploring themes of identity, relationships, and the complexities of modern life in China.
In the world of sports, there was a Chinese badminton player named Ziyun who competed in international tournaments in the early 2000s. She won several medals at the Asian Games and other regional competitions.
A contemporary artist named Ziyun, born in 1985, is known for her abstract paintings and installations that incorporate elements of traditional Chinese calligraphy and ink painting with modern techniques.
Finally, there was a Chinese entrepreneur and business leader named Ziyun who founded a successful technology company in the late 1990s. He was recognized for his contributions to the growth of the Chinese tech industry and received several awards and accolades during his career.
People
Ziyun + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ziyun 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
Ziyun: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ziyun?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 11 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ziyun 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 31,159,485 US residents.
Is Ziyun a common name?
We classify Ziyun as "Very Rare". It ranks above 30.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ziyun most popular?
The single biggest year for Ziyun was 2005, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ziyun is about 19 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 Ziyun in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ziyun a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ziyun 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 Ziyun still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ziyun 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 Ziyun 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 common is the name Ziyun?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people share the name Ziyun at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.