Shilpa
Feminine · “art”
Shilpa is Sanskrit for art and craft, the skill of the maker's hand. It is a common name in India, and it names a whole body of old texts on how to build temples and carve images of the gods.
How old is the name Shilpa?
Shilpa first appears in US birth records in 1968 — 57 years ago. The typical Shilpa alive today was born around 1984, making them about 41 years old. About 600 people named Shilpa are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Shilpa most popular?
Shilpa peaked in 1973, reaching #2455 nationally. See the whole 1973 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From śilpa to Shilpa
The story of Shilpa
The Shilpa Shastras are Sanskrit treatises on the arts, setting out proportions for sculpture, rules for temple plans and the crafts of painting and metalwork, and their word for craft became a well-loved girl's name. Indian families brought it to the United States as they settled here. Its best-known bearer abroad is the actress Shilpa Shetty, who became the center of a national argument in Britain when she was bullied on a reality television show, drew thousands of complaints on her behalf, and went on to win it.
Meaning
art, craft, skill
From Sanskrit śilpa, art, craft or skill, especially in making and building.
How the name formed
- śilpa
- Shilpa
Related forms: Shilpa · Shilpa · Śilpā
Pronouncing Shilpa
SHIL-puh
Two syllables, stressed on the first, with a short i.
Nicknames for Shilpa
Limited
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
- 1968
- Most girls named
- 197330 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2455reached in 1973
- Change vs 2004
- 0.0%6 in 2010, from 6
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.
Shilpa in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Shilpa in Hindi — same name
- Shilpa in Marathi — same name
- Śilpā in Sanskrit — related form
Shilpas among us
people named Shilpa are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Shilpa sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Its meaning is clear and admired: art and craft.
- It is short and easy to spell.
- It is familiar across India and in Indian families abroad.
- Some English speakers will stress the second syllable or lengthen the i.
- Outside Indian communities it will often need spelling once.
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Shilpa
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Shilpas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 600 people named Shilpa are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Shilpa in 2025?
- Shilpa is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Shilpa with classmates?
- Shilpa will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More S names
The most-given names starting with S, all years combined.
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Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Shilpa? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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