Girls' name · peaked in 1998
Imani name popularity since 1925
29,212 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Imani (95.2% girls, 4.8% boys). Half of them were born in 2005 or earlier, so the typical Imani is about 21 years old in 2026. Imani peaked in 1998 as the #253 name for girls, and it ranked #579 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 29,212
- Named Imani, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #579
- for girls in 2025 (512 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 95.2% girls
- 27,817 girls · 1,395 boys
- Most popular in
- District of Columbia
- 3.46× its national share
Peak year is the year Imani made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Imani births per year, 1925–2025
1998 was the biggest year for Imani both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1989 and 1994, Imani became 7.4× more common, from 1 in 14,500 baby girls to 1 in 1,970.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Imani's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Imani.
Decade by decade
Babies named Imani in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 0 | 0 | – |
| 1930s | 0 | 0 | Under 5 |
| 1940s | 0 | 0 | Under 5 |
| 1950s | 0 | 0 | Under 5 |
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | Under 5 |
| 1970s | 255 | 75 | #2,904 |
| 1980s | 522 | 81 | #2,674 |
| 1990s | 8,011 | 401 | #266 |
| 2000s | 8,823 | 290 | #412 |
| 2010s | 6,672 | 270 | #533 |
| 2020–25 | 3,534 | 278 | #579 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000. "Under 5" means fewer than 5 girls got the name.
Generation fingerprint
52.2% of babies named Imani from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Imani is most popular
The index compares Imani's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Imani.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 3.46× | 427 |
| Maryland | 2.47× | 1,009 |
| Georgia | 2.23× | 1,650 |
| New Jersey | 1.89× | 1,394 |
| South Carolina | 1.87× | 701 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Imani's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Imani.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Imani (1998).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data