Bethani
A feminine name derived from the Biblical place name Bethany.
Name Census estimates that about 978 living Americans carry the first name Bethani. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Bethani today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bethani births was 1988 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bethani. 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
978
~ 1 in 350,465 Americans
Peak year
1988
46 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2015 SSA rank
#13,213
Tracked since 1967
Popularity
Bethani: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bethani from the 1960s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 350 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Bethani 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 Bethani during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Bethanis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, Ohio, California recorded the most babies named Bethani, while Oklahoma, Michigan, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Bethani
The name Bethani is believed to have its roots in the Biblical town of Bethany, located near Jerusalem in ancient Judea. Bethany is derived from the Aramaic Beth Ani, which translates to "house of the poor" or "house of the afflicted."
The earliest known reference to the name Bethani can be found in the New Testament of the Bible, where it appears as the name of a village located on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem. This village was the home of Mary, Martha, and their brother Lazarus, who was famously raised from the dead by Jesus Christ.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Bethani was Bethani the Martyr, a Christian saint who lived in the 4th century AD. She was martyred in Gaul (modern-day France) during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian for refusing to renounce her Christian faith.
In the 6th century, Bethani of Leinster was an Irish princess and saint who founded several monasteries in Ireland. She is remembered for her piety and her commitment to the spread of Christianity in the region.
During the Middle Ages, the name Bethani gained popularity in various parts of Europe, particularly in England and France. One notable figure from this period was Bethani of Woodstock, an English noblewoman and Benedictine nun who lived in the 12th century.
In the 16th century, Bethani Carpio was a renowned Spanish poet and playwright known for her contributions to the Golden Age of Spanish literature. Her works explored themes of love, religion, and the human condition.
Another notable figure was Bethani Sophia Barat, a French nun who founded the Society of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic religious order dedicated to the education of girls. She lived from 1779 to 1865 and was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1925.
People
Bethani + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bethani as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Bethani: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bethani?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 978 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bethani 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 350,465 US residents.
Is Bethani a common name?
We classify Bethani as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,020 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bethani most popular?
The single biggest year for Bethani was 1988, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bethani is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Bethani a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Bethani 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.
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.