Zubin
An Iranian masculine name derived from the Persian word "zubun" meaning "of silver".
Name Census estimates that about 346 living Americans carry the first name Zubin. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zubin today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zubin births was 2004 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zubin. 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
346
~ 1 in 990,619 Americans
Peak year
2004
14 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,946
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Zubin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zubin from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 89 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zubin 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 Zubin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Zubins live
Origin
Meaning and history of Zubin
The name Zubin has its origins in the Persian language, where it is derived from the Old Persian word "zû", meaning "to shine" or "to be bright". This name was commonly used in ancient Persia, which corresponds to modern-day Iran and parts of surrounding countries.
The earliest recorded use of the name Zubin can be traced back to the Achaemenid Empire of ancient Persia, which ruled from around 550 BC to 330 BC. During this period, the name was borne by several notable figures, including Zubin, a military commander who served under King Darius the Great.
In Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest religions in the world originating from ancient Persia, the name Zubin is associated with the concept of light and brightness, reflecting the religion's emphasis on the eternal struggle between light and darkness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Zubin can be found in the Avesta, the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism, where it is mentioned in the context of a prayer or hymn.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Zubin. One of the most famous was Zubin Mehta, an Indian conductor and music director, born in 1936. He has conducted orchestras around the world and is widely regarded as one of the most influential conductors of his generation.
Another prominent figure was Zubin Kanga, an Indian lawyer and jurist who served as the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court from 1957 to 1959. He was also the first Indian to serve on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London.
In the realm of literature, Zubin Mistry was an Indian novelist and journalist who wrote several acclaimed works, including "The Householder" and "The Immigrant".
In the field of science, Zubin Pastakia was an Indian-American physicist and educator who made significant contributions to the study of solid-state physics and served as a professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Lastly, Zubin Irani was an Indian cricketer who played domestic cricket for Mumbai and represented India in the 1975 Cricket World Cup.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Zubin, which has its roots in the ancient Persian language and culture.
People
Zubin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zubin 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
Zubin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zubin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 346 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zubin 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 990,619 US residents.
Is Zubin a common name?
We classify Zubin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 355 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zubin most popular?
The single biggest year for Zubin was 2004, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zubin is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Zubin a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zubin 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.