Misk
An Arabic name derived from musk, a fragrant essence.
Name Census estimates that about 459 living Americans carry the first name Misk. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Misk today is around 6 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Misk births was 2024 (104 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Misk. 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 Misk with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
459
~ 1 in 746,741 Americans
Peak year
2024
104 babies that year
Average age
6
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,912
Tracked since 2010
Popularity
Misk: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Misk from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 317 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
Misk 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 Misk during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Misks live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. Texas, California, Illinois recorded the most babies named Misk, while Pennsylvania, Michigan, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Misk
The name Misk originates from the Arabic language and has its roots in the Middle East. It is derived from the Arabic word "misk," which means "musk," a highly valued fragrant substance obtained from the glands of the male musk deer.
The name Misk has been in use for centuries in the Arab world, with historical records showing its presence as early as the 7th century AD. It is believed to have gained popularity during the Islamic Golden Age, a period of remarkable cultural, scientific, and intellectual achievements in the Middle East and North Africa.
One of the earliest known references to the name Misk can be found in the works of renowned Arab poets and scholars of the time. The 9th-century Arab poet Abu Tammam (804-845 AD) mentioned the name in one of his poems, praising the beauty and fragrance associated with the name.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Misk. One of the most renowned was Misk al-Khazari (d. 976 AD), a prominent Arab mathematician and astronomer from Khwarezm (present-day Uzbekistan). He made significant contributions to the fields of spherical trigonometry and the study of planetary motions.
Another notable bearer of the name was Misk al-Alami (1057-1116 AD), a Fatimid philosopher and theologian from Cairo, Egypt. He was renowned for his works on Islamic jurisprudence and his defense of the Ismaili branch of Shia Islam.
In the 12th century, Misk al-Damiri (1341-1405 AD) was an Arab writer and zoologist from Cairo. He is best known for his comprehensive work titled "Hayat al-Hayawan al-Kubra" (The Great Book of Animal Life), which provided detailed descriptions of various animals, their behaviors, and their symbolism in Arab culture.
During the 14th century, Misk al-Jawhari (d. 1369 AD) was a renowned Arab calligrapher and poet from Baghdad, Iraq. He was celebrated for his mastery of the Naskh and Thuluth calligraphic scripts and his contributions to the art of Arabic calligraphy.
In more recent times, Misk Hilal (1892-1963) was a prominent Syrian poet and writer who played a significant role in the Arab literary renaissance of the early 20th century. Her works often explored themes of love, nature, and the struggles of women in Arab society.
People
Misk + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Misk as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Misk: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Misk?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 459 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Misk 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 746,741 US residents.
Is Misk a common name?
We classify Misk as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 462 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Misk most popular?
The single biggest year for Misk was 2024, when 104 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Misk is about 6 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 Misk in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Misk a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Misk 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 Misk still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Misk 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 Misk 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 many people have Misk as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.