Given name & surname
Sani
“the old one”
Sani is used as a given name and a surname. One Native American interpretation is “the old one.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Native American interpretation is “the old one.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Native American.
How it developed
From Italian Sani, from Punjabi ਟੀਨਾ, from Hausa Sani, from Arabic ثَانٍ (“second”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2000. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Sani through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 515
- 127 boys · 388 girls
- Most popular year
- 2007
- 39 babies
- 2025
- 13
- #10,497 for boys · #14,639 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −10%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 10,497 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. It also appeared in 6 birth records for girls in 2025. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 713 as a first name in 2020; 747 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.
Sani’s family of names
Sani has a related form in Sany. Sani has a related form in Sany. Sani has a related form in Sanea.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 5
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 Sani
- Sani Abachanigerian military ruler (1943-1998)
- Sani BečirovićSlovenian basketball player (born 1981)
- Sani Musa DanjaNigerian actor and musicianborn 1973
- Sani YayaTogolese finance ministerborn 1963
- Sani MaikatangaNigerian photographerborn 1975
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Sani, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Sakari
“a sweet girl”
48% boys · 52% girls
Sora
“resembling a chirping songbird”
37% boys · 63% girls
Lakota
“a beloved friend”
49% boys · 51% girls
Amaree
“having great strength; a builder” · “one who will be forever beautiful”
52% boys · 48% girls
Aiman
45% boys · 55% girls
Kamryn
“crooked nose” · “having a crooked nose”
26% boys · 74% girls
Oni
“born on sacred ground”
11% boys · 89% girls
Crimson
“as rich and deep as the color”
40% boys · 60% girls