Shinobu

UnisexGirls' nameBoys' name

Literal meaning not recorded; Japanese origin

Shinobu has been given to 10 babies in the U.S. since 1919. It was used fewer than 5 times in 2025, so it doesn't appear in the latest year's list — today it's a genuinely uncommon pick. Its peak year was 1919, with 5 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 50% girls, 50% boys all-time.

Babies named Shinobu, 1919

1 in 422,000

Shinobu over time, 1880–2025

GirlsBoys

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Shinobu over time

In 1923, Shinobu went to 0% girls and 100% boys.

19191923

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Shinobu: meaning, origin, and history

Literal meaning not recorded; Japanese origin

Japanese

What Shinobu means

Shinobu is a given name.

Origin, language, and formation

Shinobu is used in English. Its origins include Japanese.

Pronunciation and spelling

In English, Shinobu is pronounced /ʃiˈnoʊ.bu/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 5 girls were recorded with the name Shinobu between 1919 and 1919. Its highest annual count was 5 in 1919; its best national rank was #5,455 in 1919.

In the United States, 5 boys were recorded with the name Shinobu between 1923 and 1923. Its highest annual count was 5 in 1923; its best national rank was #4,793 in 1923.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Shinobu?

Shinobu had fewer than 5 recorded uses in 2025, so these figures use 1919, the last year it was published.

Among all babies, 1919: 1 in 422,000; 5 of 2,110,182 births
Among girls only: 1 in 226,000; <0.01% of girls
Rank, 1919: Unranked; Fewer than 5 uses
Coin-flip room size: 292,534 kids; Even odds of a second one

Where Shinobu sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Olivia (13,544)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 1919 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%

Class of 30Under 1%

Grade of 100Under 1%

School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 292,534 children born in 1919 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Shinobu. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Shinobus were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Shinobu was born before 1919 — so the typical Shinobu is around 106 today.

Median birth year: 1919; About 106 years old
Biggest decade: 1910s; 100.0% of all use
Born in the last 25 years: 100.0%; A modern name
Recorded since 1950: 0; People you could plausibly meet

Choose a decade

1910s — 100.0% of all recorded uses (5).

Is Shinobu rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago: —; Not ranked then
Rank vs 5 years ago: New entry; Not ranked then
Rank vs 10 years ago: —; Not ranked then
Births vs 10 years ago: —; Not published both years
Share of its own peak: 0%; Peak was 1919 (5)
Years since peak: 106; Years
Year-to-year steadiness: Not enough data; Too few years
Best rank ever: #5,455; 1919

Shinobu by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025: Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: —
Best rank ever: #5,455; 1919
Peak year: 1919; 5 that year
First recorded: 1919
Last recorded: 1919
All-time count: 5
Count in 2025: Under 5

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025: Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: —
Best rank ever: #4,793; 1923
Peak year: 1923; 5 that year
First recorded: 1923
Last recorded: 1923
All-time count: 5
Count in 2025: Under 5

Names similar to Shinobu

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

Shivana Shielah Shirron Shirret Shioban Shiketa Shikema Shiyann Shierra Shillae Shiniah Shivany Shivaya Shiwana Shimara Shikari Shinece Shimaya Shiloah Shinese Shirrel Shinise Shiyana Shiniya

Sibling names for Shinobu

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

For a sister

Lovie Hortense Lue Theda Rubye Winnifred Johnie Norine

For a brother

Casimir Edd Ora Mahlon Verne Haywood Buck Wilber

Explore around Shinobu

Top names of 1919, Shinobu's peak year The 1910s in full Other names that peaked in 1919 Girls' names starting with S