Mushka
A feminine Russian pet form of the name Maria, possibly meaning "little mouse".
Name Census estimates that about 473 living Americans carry the first name Mushka. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mushka today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mushka births was 2024 (25 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mushka. 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
473
~ 1 in 724,639 Americans
Peak year
2024
25 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,235
Tracked since 1988
Census
Mushka in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 301 people with the first name Mushka, which placed it at #29,423 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
#29,423
National first-name rank
People counted
301
301 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
96.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mushka
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mushka is White at 96.7%. The next largest groups are Black (3.3%). 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 Mushka 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 Mushka at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.7% · 291
- Black or African American3.3% · 10
Popularity
Mushka: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mushka from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 144 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Mushka remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mushka 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 Mushka during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mushkas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Mushka
The name Mushka has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which was prominent in ancient India during the Vedic period, dating back to around 1500-500 BC. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "muṣka," which means "sheath" or "scabbard," referring to the protective covering for a sword or knife.
In Hindu mythology, Mushka is mentioned as the name of a demon or asura who fought against the gods. This reference can be found in the ancient Hindu epic, the Mahabharata, which dates back to around 400 BC-400 AD.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mushka is found in the Gupta Empire, which ruled over parts of modern-day India and Pakistan from the 4th to the 6th century AD. During this period, Mushka was a relatively common name among the ruling class and nobility.
In the 7th century AD, there was a famous Buddhist monk named Mushka who traveled extensively throughout Asia, spreading the teachings of Buddhism. He is credited with establishing several monasteries and temples in regions such as Central Asia and China.
Another notable figure named Mushka was a renowned Indian mathematician and astronomer who lived during the 8th century AD. He made significant contributions to the field of mathematics, particularly in the areas of trigonometry and calculus.
During the medieval period, the name Mushka was associated with several rulers and military leaders in various parts of the Indian subcontinent. One such figure was Mushka Deva, a king of the Rashtrakuta Empire in the 10th century AD, who was known for his military conquests and patronage of the arts.
In the 12th century AD, there was a famous Sufi mystic and poet named Mushka who hailed from present-day Afghanistan. His writings and teachings had a profound influence on the spiritual and cultural landscape of the region.
Throughout history, the name Mushka has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including scholars, artists, warriors, and spiritual leaders. While it may not be as widely used today as it once was, the name continues to hold significance and cultural resonance in certain parts of the world.
People
Mushka + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mushka 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
Mushka: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mushka?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 473 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mushka 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 724,639 US residents.
Is Mushka a common name?
We classify Mushka as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 481 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mushka most popular?
The single biggest year for Mushka was 2024, when 25 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mushka is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mushka in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 301 people with the name Mushka, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,423 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 Mushka 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 Mushka?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mushka leans strongly female. 305 people counted with this name were female (97.8%), compared with 7 male bearers (2.2%). 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 Mushka?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mushka is White at 96.7%. The next largest groups are Black (3.3%). 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 Mushka most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Mushka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.7% (291 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 Mushka in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mushka a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mushka 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 Mushka still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mushka 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 Mushka 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 Mushka?
See how many people share the name Mushka on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.