Roshan
Masculine · “bright”
Roshan is given to both — 1,788 boys and 129 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Roshan is the Persian word for bright — light in the sense of a lamp burning rather than the sun. It is used across Iran, Afghanistan, India and Pakistan.
How old is the name Roshan?
Roshan first appears in US birth records in 1974 — 51 years ago. The typical Roshan alive today was born around 2006, making them about 19 years old. About 1,800 people named Roshan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Roshan most popular?
Roshan peaked in 2001, reaching #1777 nationally. Today it ranks #3658, 1,881 places below that high. See the whole 2001 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Roshan
Persian carried a large vocabulary of light into the languages of South and Central Asia along with its poetry and its administration, and roshan is among the most-used of those words. It became a personal name across the Persianate world and is used for men in Iran and India and for women in some communities. It reaches American records with Iranian, Afghan and Indian families.
Meaning
bright, luminous
From Persian roshan, bright or shining; the same root gives roshanai, light or illumination, and the word is used of lamps, faces and understanding alike.
Pronouncing Roshan
roh-SHAHN
Two syllables with the stress on the second. English speakers often say ROH-shan.
Nicknames for Roshan
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1974
- Most boys named
- 201064 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1777reached in 2001
- Change vs 2024
- −3.2%30 in 2025, from 31
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Roshan in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Roshan in Persian — same name
- Roshan in Urdu — same name
- Roshan in Hindi — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Roshans among us
people named Roshan are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 56,936 born in 2025 was named Roshan
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Raymie test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Roshan's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Raymie climbed just as high around 1961, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Raymie's path sketches the road Roshan is walking now.
Roshan sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Roshan is headed
Roshan should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Roshan beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Roshan in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning that is warm and concrete.
- Six letters and two syllables, easy to write and to say.
- Recognized across Iran, Afghanistan, India and Pakistan.
- The stress moves to the front in English mouths.
- In some communities it is used for women, so forms may guess wrong.
- It is close to Rohan, a separate Indian name, and the two are confused.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Roshan to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Roshan? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Roshan
Masculine · #3658 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Roshans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,800 people named Roshan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Roshan in 2025?
- Roshan ranks #3658 among US boy names in 2025, with 30 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Roshan?
- About 1 in every 56,936 US boys born in 2025 was named Roshan — 30 in all.
- Will my child share the name Roshan with classmates?
- Roshan will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Roshan
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Jimmie#3658 · Mckinley#3658 · Menno#3658 · Claudio#3658 · Ezekial#3658 · Brandt#3658 · Benuel#3658 · Gustav#3658
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Roshan? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Roshan and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle