Boys' name · since 1985
Shankar
Shankar has 80 recorded births since 1985 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1997 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #18,918 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 80
- born since 1985
- 1990s
- peak decade
Shankar is not among the current top-ranked boys names; 80 have been recorded since 1985.
Shankar has 80 recorded births among boys since 1985, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1985 to 2018.
- #18,918 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- 80 born since 1985
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Shankar ranks #18,918 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 80 born since 1985, peaking in the 1990s.
- #18,918 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 80
- born since 1985
- 1990s
- peak decade
Shankar's 80 recorded births place it above 58.34% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Shankar's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Shankar's full recorded timeline at 2000, 51% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 49% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1985, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1997 peak of 9 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Shankar popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1985–2018
- Peak year (1997)
- 9
- Annual births at peak, across 34 years of records
Shankar by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (29 births, 36% of the file).
1990s was Shankar's strongest decade.
29 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 36% of all-time use.
Shankar births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1980s 10
1980s
10 births
- 1990s
1990s
29 births
- 2000s
2000s
18 births
- 2010s
2010s
23 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 29 births (36% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Shankar? ▼
Where does Shankar sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Shankar most popular? ▼
How long has the name Shankar been used? ▼
What names are similar to Shankar? ▼
What to do with Shankar's data
- Shankar's usage has stayed within range of its 1990s decade-level peak (29 total births) through the 2010s (23) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Shankar
Nearby Names Like Shankar
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Shankar
Compare Shankar side by side: Shankar vs Shawn Shankar vs Shane Shankar vs Shaun
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Shankar: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1997)
Similar record span (~33 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1985–2018 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Shankar draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.