Anajah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "heaven's gift".
Name Census estimates that about 311 living Americans carry the first name Anajah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Anajah today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Anajah births was 2003 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Anajah. 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
311
~ 1 in 1,102,104 Americans
Peak year
2003
32 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2020 SSA rank
#13,567
Tracked since 1996
Census
Anajah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 253 people with the first name Anajah, which placed it at #32,947 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#32,947
National first-name rank
People counted
253
253 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
90.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Anajah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Anajah is Black at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Anajah described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Anajah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American90.5% · 229
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 11
- Two or more races2.8% · 7
- White1.6% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 2
Popularity
Anajah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Anajah from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 215 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Anajah 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 Anajah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Anajahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Pennsylvania, Illinois, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Anajah, while North Carolina, Illinois, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Anajah
The name Anajah has its roots in Arabic and Islamic cultures, tracing back to the 7th century AD. It is derived from the Arabic word "najat," which means "salvation" or "deliverance." The name carries a deeply spiritual connotation, often associated with the concept of being saved or delivered from harm or difficulty.
In early Islamic texts and historical records, the name Anajah is mentioned as a name given to individuals who have been blessed with divine protection or guidance. It was commonly used by devout Muslims to express their gratitude and reverence for the divine intervention that helped them overcome challenges or find their way in life.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Anajah can be found in the writings of Ibn Ishaq, a renowned Islamic scholar and historian from the 8th century. He documented the life of a woman named Anajah bint Abi Sufyan, who lived during the time of the Prophet Muhammad and was known for her unwavering faith and devotion to the Islamic teachings.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Anajah. One such individual was Anajah al-Jurjani, a renowned Islamic scholar and philosopher who lived in the 11th century (1009-1078 AD). He made significant contributions to the fields of logic, metaphysics, and theology, and his works have been widely studied and revered in academic circles.
Another prominent figure was Anajah al-Andalusi, a renowned Muslim poet and literary figure from the 12th century (1121-1185 AD). She was celebrated for her mastery of Arabic poetry and her profound insights into the human condition, which she eloquently expressed through her writings.
In the realm of Islamic mysticism, Anajah al-Qadiri (1557-1624 AD) was a revered Sufi saint and spiritual guide. She was renowned for her deep devotion to the Qadiri Sufi order and her teachings on the path to spiritual enlightenment, which inspired countless followers during her lifetime and beyond.
Anajah al-Khatib (1801-1875 AD) was a notable scholar and historian from the 19th century. She was widely respected for her extensive knowledge of Islamic history, literature, and jurisprudence, and her works have been invaluable resources for researchers and academics studying the rich heritage of Islamic civilization.
These are just a few examples of the many remarkable individuals who have carried the name Anajah throughout history, each leaving an indelible mark on their respective fields and contributing to the rich tapestry of human knowledge and understanding.
People
Anajah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Anajah 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
Anajah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Anajah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 311 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Anajah 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 1,102,104 US residents.
Is Anajah a common name?
We classify Anajah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 316 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Anajah most popular?
The single biggest year for Anajah was 2003, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Anajah is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Anajah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 253 people with the name Anajah, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #32,947 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Anajah in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Anajah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Anajah leans strongly female. 247 people counted with this name were female (96.5%), compared with 9 male bearers (3.5%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Anajah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Anajah is Black at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Anajah most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Anajah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (229 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Anajah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Anajah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Anajah 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 Anajah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Anajah 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 Anajah 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.
How many people have the name Anajah?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Anajah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.