Zair
An Arabic name meaning bright or radiant.
Name Census estimates that about 596 living Americans carry the first name Zair. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zair today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zair births was 2024 (48 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zair. 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
596
~ 1 in 575,091 Americans
Peak year
2024
48 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,739
Tracked since 1999
Census
Zair in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 465 people with the first name Zair, which placed it at #21,716 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
#21,716
National first-name rank
People counted
465
465 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
60.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zair
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zair is Hispanic at 60.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.2%) and White (5.6%). 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 Zair 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 Zair at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino60.2% · 280
- Black or African American26.2% · 122
- White5.6% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.4% · 25
- Two or more races1.9% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 3
Popularity
Zair: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zair 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 264 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zair remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zair 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 Zair during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Zairs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. California, Pennsylvania, Texas recorded the most babies named Zair, while New York, New Jersey, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Zair
The name Zair has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, tracing back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Arabic word "zair," which means "visitor" or "guest." The name is believed to have been used as a descriptive term for someone who frequently traveled or was a guest in different places.
In the Islamic tradition, the name Zair is sometimes associated with the concept of hospitality and welcoming guests. It is considered a virtuous trait to treat visitors with kindness and respect, which may have contributed to the popularity of this name.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Zair can be found in historical records from the 9th century CE, during the Abbasid Caliphate. It is mentioned in various Arabic literature and poetry from that time period.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Zair. One of the most famous was Zair al-Naqshbandi (1329-1389), a Sufi mystic and spiritual leader who played a significant role in the development of the Naqshbandi order of Sufism. He was born in Bukhara, modern-day Uzbekistan, and his teachings and writings had a lasting impact on Islamic spirituality.
Another prominent figure with the name Zair was Zair ibn Qais (7th century CE), an Arab poet and warrior who lived during the early days of Islam. He was known for his eloquent verses and his loyalty to the Prophet Muhammad.
In the 12th century, there was Zair al-Din Nakhshabi, a renowned Persian philosopher and theologian. He made significant contributions to the field of Islamic metaphysics and was widely respected for his profound knowledge and wisdom.
During the 14th century, Zair al-Din Barani was an influential historian and writer from the Delhi Sultanate in India. His chronicles and works provided valuable insights into the political and cultural landscape of that era.
Another notable figure was Zair al-Din al-Razi (1149-1209), a Persian polymath and scholar who made significant contributions to various fields, including medicine, philosophy, and physics.
These examples illustrate the historical prominence and diversity of individuals who bore the name Zair across different regions and time periods, reflecting its deep-rooted cultural and linguistic roots in the Arabic and Islamic traditions.
People
Zair + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zair 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
Zair: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zair?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 596 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zair 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 575,091 US residents.
Is Zair a common name?
We classify Zair as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 601 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zair most popular?
The single biggest year for Zair was 2024, when 48 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zair is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zair in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 465 people with the name Zair, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #21,716 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 Zair 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 Zair?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zair leans strongly male. 422 people counted with this name were male (91.7%), compared with 38 female bearers (8.3%). 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 Zair?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zair is Hispanic at 60.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.2%) and White (5.6%). 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 Zair most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Zair in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.2% (280 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 Zair in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zair a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zair 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.
Is Zair still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zair 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 Zair 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 Zair?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.