Given name & surname
Imani
“having great faith”·“God is with us”
In French use, Imani has a related form in Iman. One Arabic interpretation is “having great faith.” Imani is a variant of Immanuel. In German use, Immanuel carries the interpretation “God is with us.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In French use, Imani has a related form in Iman. One Arabic interpretation is “having great faith.” Imani is a variant of Immanuel. In German use, Immanuel carries the interpretation “God is with us.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
In French use, Imani has a related form in Iman. An origin associated with Iman is Arabic.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
From Swahili Imani, from Swahili imani, from Arabic إِيمَان, from Arabic آمَنَ, from Arabic ء م ن; its root is Arabic ء م ن.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1970. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Imani through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 29,212
- 1,395 boys · 27,817 girls
- Most popular year
- 1998
- 1,272 babies
- 2025
- 553
- #579 for girls · #3,014 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +4%
- Steady
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 6% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 512 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 579 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 0.7% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,222 in 1998. It also appeared in 41 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (71). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 21,080 as a first name in 2020; 682 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Imani’s family of names
In French usage, Imani has a related form in Iman. Imani has a related form in Immanuel.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
People named Imani
- Imani HakimAmerican actressborn 1993
- Imani CoppolaAmerican singer and musicianborn 1978
- Imani McGee-StaffordAmerican basketball player (born 1994)
- Imani de JongDutch swimmerborn 2002
- Imani UzuriAfrican American singer and musician
- Imani DorseyAmerican soccer playerborn 1996
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Imani, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Asha
“wish” · “desire”
1% boys · 99% girls
Karissa
“filled with grace and kindess; very dear”
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Quianna
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Raelin
“son of grace”
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Raelani
“son of grace”
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Amani
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Nozomi
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Amany
>99% girls