Given name
Anisa
“one who is affectionate and friendly”
Anisa is used as a given name. One Arabic interpretation is “one who is affectionate and friendly.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Arabic interpretation is “one who is affectionate and friendly.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1958. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Anisa through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 5,558
- 0 boys · 5,558 girls
- Most popular year
- 2005
- 221 babies
- 2025
- 62
- #2,752 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −12%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 62 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 2,752 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 11.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 221 in 2005. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (16). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 6,013 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Anisa’s family of names
Anisa has a related form in Anissa. Anisa has a related form in Anyssa. Anisa has a related form in Aneesa.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 17
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Anisa
- Anisa MakhloufSyrian politician1930–2016
- Anisa SayyedIndian sport shooterborn 1980
- Anisa GuajardoMexican association football playerborn 1991
- Anisa RolaSlovenian footballerborn 1994
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Anisa, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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Saniye
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