Nishat
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "happiness" or "joy".
Name Census estimates that about 164 living Americans carry the first name Nishat. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Nishat today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nishat births was 2002 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nishat. 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 Nishat with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
164
~ 1 in 2,089,965 Americans
Peak year
2002
19 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2016 SSA rank
#13,963
Tracked since 1993
Census
Nishat in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 677 people with the first name Nishat, which placed it at #16,602 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
#16,602
National first-name rank
People counted
677
677 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
95.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nishat
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nishat is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (1.8%) and Black (1.3%). 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 Nishat 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 Nishat at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.3% · 645
- White1.8% · 12
- Black or African American1.3% · 9
- Two or more races1.2% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 3
Popularity
Nishat: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nishat from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 104 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
Nishat 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 Nishat during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nishats live
Origin
Meaning and history of Nishat
The name Nishat has its origins in the Persian language and is derived from the Persian word "nishāt," which means joy, delight, or happiness. This name was commonly used in the Persian cultural sphere, encompassing regions like modern-day Iran, Afghanistan, and parts of Central Asia.
In Persian literature and poetry, the word "nishāt" is often used to express feelings of bliss, contentment, and spiritual ecstasy. The name Nishat was likely bestowed upon individuals with the intention of bringing them joy and happiness in life.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nishat can be found in the 12th century Persian epic poem "Shahnameh" (Book of Kings) by the renowned poet Ferdowsi. In this literary masterpiece, there is a character named Nishat, though specific details about their role or significance are scarce.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Nishat. One such person was Nishat Khan (1554-1623), a renowned Mughal-era musician and vocalist who served at the court of Emperor Akbar and his son Jahangir. His contributions to the development of Hindustani classical music are widely recognized.
Another prominent figure was Nishat Manjil (1615-1672), a Mughal princess and the daughter of Emperor Jahangir. She was known for her patronage of the arts, particularly architecture, and commissioned the construction of the famous Nishat Bagh (Garden of Joy) in Srinagar, Kashmir.
In the 19th century, Nishat Hussain (1832-1898) was a renowned Islamic scholar and poet from the Indian subcontinent. He was renowned for his mastery of Arabic and Persian literature and contributed significantly to the literary and intellectual circles of his time.
Moving to more recent times, Nishat Khan (1953-2021) was a prominent Indian classical musician and vocalist from the Khalifa-Nizami gharana (musical lineage). He was awarded the prestigious Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honor, for his contributions to the field of music.
Nishat Ahmed (born 1979) is a contemporary British author and screenwriter of Pakistani descent. Her works, such as the novels "Family Tree" and "Souled," explore themes of identity, culture, and the immigrant experience.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have carried the name Nishat throughout history, each leaving their mark in various fields ranging from music and literature to art and scholarship.
People
Nishat + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nishat as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nishat: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nishat?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 164 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nishat 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 2,089,965 US residents.
Is Nishat a common name?
We classify Nishat as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 167 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nishat most popular?
The single biggest year for Nishat was 2002, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nishat is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nishat in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 677 people with the name Nishat, or 0.22 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,602 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 Nishat 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 Nishat?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nishat leans strongly female. 622 people counted with this name were female (91.9%), compared with 55 male bearers (8.1%). 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 Nishat?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nishat is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (1.8%) and Black (1.3%). 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 Nishat most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Nishat in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (645 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 Nishat in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nishat a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nishat 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 Nishat still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nishat 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 Nishat 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 called Nishat?
You can see how many Americans are named Nishat on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.