Anaissa
An Arabic name meaning "companion" or "close friend".
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the first name Anaissa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Anaissa today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Anaissa births was 1994 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Anaissa. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
114
~ 1 in 3,006,617 Americans
Peak year
1994
10 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,558
Tracked since 1992
Popularity
Anaissa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Anaissa from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 48 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Anaissa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Anaissa by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Anaissa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Anaissas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Anaissa
The given name Anaissa has its origins in the Greek language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is believed to be a combination of the Greek words "ana" meaning "up" or "again," and "issa" which is thought to be derived from the name "Aissa," a variant of the Greek goddess of fortune, Tyche.
The earliest recorded use of the name Anaissa can be traced back to the Byzantine Empire, where it was a popular name among the Greek nobility and aristocracy. It is mentioned in several historical records and texts from that era, suggesting its widespread use among the upper classes.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear the name Anaissa was a Byzantine noblewoman who lived in the 11th century. She was the daughter of a prominent military commander and was known for her intelligence and piety.
In the 12th century, an Anaissa was recorded as a nun in a convent in Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. Her name appears in the convent's records, indicating her religious devotion and commitment to the monastic life.
During the Renaissance period, an Italian noblewoman named Anaissa Farnese lived in the 16th century. She was a member of the powerful Farnese family and was known for her patronage of the arts and her support of Renaissance artists and writers.
In the 18th century, a French writer and poet named Anaissa de Montesson gained recognition for her literary works and her involvement in the salons of Paris. She was born in 1737 and lived until 1806, leaving behind a legacy of poetry and literary contributions.
Another notable figure was Anaissa Gomez, a Cuban revolutionary who fought alongside Che Guevara and Fidel Castro in the Cuban Revolution of the 1950s. She was born in 1932 and played a significant role in the movement that overthrew the Batista regime in Cuba.
These are just a few examples of historical figures who bore the name Anaissa, demonstrating its enduring presence throughout various cultures and eras, from ancient times to the modern era.
People
Anaissa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Anaissa as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Anaissa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Anaissa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 114 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Anaissa going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 3,006,617 US residents.
Is Anaissa a common name?
We classify Anaissa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 116 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Anaissa most popular?
The single biggest year for Anaissa was 1994, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Anaissa is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Anaissa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Anaissa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Anaissa in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Anaissa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Anaissa in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Anaissa can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Anaissa?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.