Rahaf
An Arabic feminine name meaning "traveler" or "journey".
Name Census estimates that about 824 living Americans carry the first name Rahaf. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rahaf today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rahaf births was 2018 (73 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rahaf. 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 Rahaf with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
824
~ 1 in 415,964 Americans
Peak year
2018
73 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,065
Tracked since 1994
Census
Rahaf in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 902 people with the first name Rahaf, which placed it at #13,398 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
#13,398
National first-name rank
People counted
902
902 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
83.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rahaf
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rahaf is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Black (7.6%) and Two or More Races (6.3%). 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 Rahaf 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 Rahaf at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.5% · 753
- Black or African American7.6% · 69
- Two or more races6.3% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 18
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 5
Popularity
Rahaf: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rahaf from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 457 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Rahaf remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rahaf 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 Rahaf during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rahafs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. New York, Michigan, California recorded the most babies named Rahaf, while Virginia, Louisiana, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 47 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rahaf
The name Rahaf is of Arabic origin. It is derived from the Arabic word "rahf" which means "a gentle breeze" or "a soft wind." The name is believed to have originated in the Arabian Peninsula during the pre-Islamic era.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Rahaf can be found in ancient Arabic poetry and literature. It was often used as a metaphor to describe a woman's beauty, grace, and elegance.
The name Rahaf gained popularity during the Islamic era, particularly after the advent of Islam in the 7th century. It was embraced by many Muslim families as a beautiful and meaningful name for their daughters.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Rahaf. One of the earliest was Rahaf bint Qudamah (born around 630 CE), a renowned Arab poetess and scholar from the city of Medina. She was celebrated for her eloquence and her contributions to the preservation of Arabic literature.
Another famous Rahaf was Rahaf al-Qudsi (born in the 12th century CE), a Sufi mystic and poet from Damascus. Her works, which explored the themes of love, spirituality, and devotion, were widely admired and influential during her time.
In the 19th century, Rahaf al-Khuri (1836-1891) was a prominent Lebanese writer, journalist, and feminist. She played a significant role in advocating for women's rights and education in the Arab world.
Rahaf Abdulmajeed (born in 1968) is a contemporary Jordanian artist and sculptor. Her works, which often incorporate Arabic calligraphy and Islamic motifs, have been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums around the world.
Rahaf Harfoush (born in 1980) is a Canadian-Lebanese author and digital strategist, known for her expertise in social media and digital innovation. She has written several books on the impact of technology on business and society.
While the name Rahaf has been in use for centuries, it continues to be a popular choice among Arabic-speaking families, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa. Its connection to the poetic imagery of a gentle breeze and its historical significance have contributed to its enduring appeal.
People
Rahaf + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rahaf as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rahaf: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rahaf?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 824 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rahaf 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 415,964 US residents.
Is Rahaf a common name?
We classify Rahaf as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 831 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rahaf most popular?
The single biggest year for Rahaf was 2018, when 73 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rahaf is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Rahaf in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 902 people with the name Rahaf, or 0.30 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,398 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 Rahaf 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 Rahaf?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Rahaf leans strongly female. 889 people counted with this name were female (98.9%), compared with 10 male bearers (1.1%). 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 Rahaf?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rahaf is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Black (7.6%) and Two or More Races (6.3%). 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 Rahaf most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Rahaf in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.5% (753 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 Rahaf in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rahaf a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rahaf 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 Rahaf still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rahaf 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 Rahaf 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 named Rahaf?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.