Baby Names US
Unisex name ★ peaked 2025

Shams

Gender Unisex · 76% girls Rank 2025 #3,635 Trend ↑ Rising 76%

Shams is an Arabic origin word which is used as a unisex given name and a surname.

Rank 2025
#3,635
among girls · ↑174 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
49
named Shams · +9% vs 2024
How common
1 in 38,268
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2025
49 babies
All-time total
448
#14,828 all-time among girls
First recorded
1993
in Social Security records

Shams popularity over time

448 babies have been named Shams since 1993, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.010.020.020.0318801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s – – – – – –
1970s – – – – – –
1980s – – – – – –
1990s 5 16 21 2 – #16,474
2000s 28 13 41 4 +95% #13,422
2010s 130 31 161 16 +293% #4,757
2020s (to 2025) 179 46 225 38 +133% #3,635

Where Shams is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 46 0.03 outside top 500
2027 51 0.03 outside top 500
2028 54 0.03 outside top 500
2029 58 0.04 outside top 500
2030 61 0.04 outside top 500

The story of Shams

Shams is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #3,635 in 2025 with 42 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1993, 448 American babies have been named Shams, about 76% girls and 24% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2025, when 49 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Shams stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Shams?

The median living Shams is about 5 years old; half are between 2 and 10. An estimated 400 people named Shams are alive in the United States today.

median 5 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Shams year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 42 #3,635 7 #10,511
2024 40 #3,809 5 #13,922
2023 34 #4,264 12 #7,232
2022 18 #6,671 6 #12,091
2021 21 #5,920 11 #7,498
2020 24 #5,293 5 #13,729
2019 29 #4,757 6 #11,915
2018 16 #7,365 – –
2017 22 #5,797 6 #11,998
2016 12 #9,342 – –
2015 14 #8,368 6 #11,863
2014 12 #9,452 – –
2013 8 #12,977 7 #10,549
2012 – – – –
2011 5 #19,124 – –
2010 12 #9,706 6 #11,966
2009 7 #14,991 – –
2008 – – – –
2007 7 #15,226 – –
2006 8 #13,422 – –
2005 6 #16,117 – –
2004 – – – –
2003 – – – –
2002 – – 6 #10,458
2001 – – 7 #9,076
2000 – – – –
1995 – – – –
1990 – – – –
1985 – – – –
1980 – – – –
1975 – – – –
1970 – – – –
1965 – – – –
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Shams

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Shams Tabrizi Shams Tabrizi Persian poet (1185–1248) Medieval
  2. 2 Shams Pahlavi Shams Pahlavi Iranian princess (1917–1996) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Shams, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Shams?

The median living Shams is about 5 years old. Half of all living Shamss are between 2 and 10 years old.

How many people named Shams are alive today?

An estimated 400 people named Shams are alive in the United States, based on 448 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Shams mean?

Shams is an Arabic origin word which is used as a unisex given name and a surname.

How popular is the name Shams in 2025?

Shams ranked #3,635 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 42 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Shams?

448 babies have been named Shams in the United States since 1993, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Shams most popular?

Shams peaked in 2025, when 49 newborns received the name.

Is Shams a boy or girl name?

Shams is used for both: about 76% of babies named Shams have been girls and 24% boys.

Is the name Shams rising or falling?

Shams is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Shams become more popular?

Shams is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 61 girls named Shams in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Shams?

Well-known people named Shams include Shams Tabrizi (writer), Shams Pahlavi (politician).

Names like Shams

Names that sound and feel close to Shams: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Shams with similar names → More names starting with S →