Holding steady.
Popularity of Kumar since 1972
Babies named Kumar per year in U.S. Social Security records. Raw births topped out in 1998, but relative to how few babies were recorded back then, Kumar's real moment was 1975.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1970s | 57 |
| 1980s | 77 |
| 1990s | 75 |
| 2000s | 58 |
| 2010s | 38 |
| 2020s | 0 |
Meaning & origin
Kumar is a name rooted in ancient Sanskrit, meaning 'child, prince, or young man'. It entered U.S. records in 1972 and saw its peak rank in 1975, though it has not been among the top 1000 in recent years. The name is most commonly used as a surname or middle name in South Asian communities, and its trajectory has been stable in the decades since the 1970s. Despite its low frequency, Kumar carries cultural weight as an epithet for the Hindu god Kartikeya and remains a familiar choice in Indian diaspora families.
Kumar derives from the Sanskrit कुमार (kumāra), meaning 'child, youth, or prince'. In Hindu tradition, it is an epithet of Kartikeya, the god of war. It has been widely adopted as a surname across India and as a middle name for boys in many South Asian communities, especially among Tamils and other Dravidian-language speakers. Its use as a given name in the West is rare and relatively modern.
Nicknames & variants
Variants: Kumara, Kumaran, Kumaresh
Sibling names for Kumar
Names that share Kumar's style, for a brother or sister.
