Imanni
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "faith" or "belief".
Name Census estimates that about 102 living Americans carry the first name Imanni. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Imanni today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Imanni births was 1996 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Imanni. 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
102
~ 1 in 3,360,337 Americans
Peak year
1996
10 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2022 SSA rank
#16,242
Tracked since 1993
Census
Imanni in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 139 people with the first name Imanni, which placed it at #47,200 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
#47,200
National first-name rank
People counted
139
139 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
65.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Imanni
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Imanni is Black at 65.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (14.4%) and Two or More Races (12.9%). 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 Imanni 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 Imanni at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American65.5% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino14.4% · 20
- Two or more races12.9% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.3% · 6
- White2.2% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 1
Popularity
Imanni: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Imanni 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. 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
Imanni 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 Imanni during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Imanni
The name Imanni has its origins in the Igbo language spoken in parts of southeastern Nigeria. It is derived from the Igbo word "imani," which means "faith" or "belief." The name likely emerged several centuries ago among the Igbo people, who have a rich cultural and linguistic heritage dating back thousands of years.
In Igbo culture, names often carry deep significance and are chosen to reflect values, aspirations, or circumstances surrounding a child's birth. The name Imanni may have been given to children with the intention of instilling a strong sense of faith or belief in their lives.
While the exact origins of the name are difficult to trace, it is possible that Imanni was mentioned in oral traditions or written records of the Igbo people. However, there is limited documentation of specific individuals bearing this name in ancient times.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Imanni can be found in the 18th century, with Imanni Nwokeke, a notable Igbo trader and community leader born around 1730. Nwokeke played a significant role in facilitating trade and diplomacy between the Igbo people and European merchants in what is now known as Nigeria.
Another notable figure was Imanni Nwachukwu, an Igbo priestess and healer who lived in the late 19th century. Nwachukwu was renowned for her knowledge of traditional Igbo medicine and her ability to communicate with the spiritual realm, earning her great respect among her community.
In the 20th century, Imanni Okpara (1925-2001) was a prominent Nigerian writer and educator. Her works explored themes of cultural identity, family dynamics, and the challenges faced by women in traditional Igbo society. Okpara was also a pioneer in promoting Igbo language and literature in educational institutions.
Imanni Uzoma (1947-2010) was a Nigerian fashion designer and entrepreneur who helped popularize traditional Igbo textiles and designs on the international stage. Her innovative creations blended traditional Igbo aesthetics with contemporary fashion trends, earning her recognition and acclaim.
Another notable figure was Imanni Chukwuma (1960-2018), a Nigerian human rights activist and lawyer. Chukwuma dedicated her life to advocating for the rights of marginalized communities, particularly women and children. She founded several organizations aimed at providing legal aid and support to victims of human rights abuses.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have carried the name Imanni, reflecting the name's deep roots in the Igbo culture and its association with faith, belief, and cultural identity.
People
Imanni + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Imanni as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with I
Other first names starting with I with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Imanni: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Imanni?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 102 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Imanni 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 3,360,337 US residents.
Is Imanni a common name?
We classify Imanni as "Very Rare". It ranks above 64.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 104 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Imanni most popular?
The single biggest year for Imanni was 1996, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Imanni is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Imanni in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 139 people with the name Imanni, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #47,200 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 Imanni 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 Imanni?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Imanni leans strongly female. 117 people counted with this name were female (86.7%), compared with 18 male bearers (13.3%). 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 Imanni?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Imanni is Black at 65.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (14.4%) and Two or More Races (12.9%). 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 Imanni most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Imanni in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.5% (91 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 Imanni in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Imanni a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Imanni 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 Imanni still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Imanni 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 Imanni 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 are named Imanni?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.