Lani
Hawaiian given name meaning "sky", "heavens", "royal", or "majesty".
Name Census estimates that about 6,415 living Americans carry the first name Lani. It is a predominantly female name (97.5% of registrations). The average person named Lani today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lani births was 1979 (143 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lani. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Lani with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Lani is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 183 boys registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
6.4K
~ 1 in 53,430 Americans
Peak year
1979
143 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2023 SSA rank
#1,911
Tracked since 1917
Census
Lani in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 7,467 people with the first name Lani, which placed it at #3,000 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
#3,000
National first-name rank
People counted
7.5K
7,467 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
2.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
53.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lani
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lani is White at 53.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.6%) and Hispanic (10.9%). 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 Lani 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 Lani at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White53.2% · 3,972
- Asian and Pacific Islander21.6% · 1,610
- Hispanic or Latino10.9% · 816
- Two or more races9.1% · 676
- Black or African American4.2% · 312
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 81
Gender
Gender distribution for Lani
Lani leans heavily female at 97.5% of total registrations, but 183 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Lani as a male name
- Ranked #13,351 in 2023
- 5 male births in 2023
- Peak: 1961 (11 births)
Lani as a female name
- Ranked #1,911 in 2024
- 104 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1979 (143 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lani leans strongly female. 7,206 people counted with this name were female (96.6%), compared with 257 male bearers (3.4%).
Popularity
Lani: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lani from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 1,155 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Lani remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lani 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 Lani during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lanis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. California, Hawaii, Texas recorded the most babies named Lani, while Minnesota, Indiana, Colorado recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 121 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lani
The name Lani originates from the Hawaiian language and culture. It is believed to have its roots in the word "lani," which means "sky," "heaven," or "heavenly" in Hawaiian. The name's origins can be traced back to the ancient Polynesian settlers who inhabited the Hawaiian Islands.
In Hawaiian mythology, Lani was the name given to the heavenly realm, representing the celestial sphere or the abode of the gods. It was a sacred concept that reflected the deep reverence and connection the ancient Hawaiians had with the natural world and the spiritual realm.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Lani can be found in the Hawaiian chants and oral traditions, which were passed down through generations. These chants often invoked the name Lani as a way to honor the divine forces and seek blessings from the heavens.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Lani. One of the most renowned was Lani Kaumualii (1778-1824), who was the last ruling monarch of the Kingdom of Kauai before the unification of the Hawaiian Islands under King Kamehameha I. Kaumualii was known for his diplomatic skills and efforts to preserve the sovereignty of his island.
Another prominent figure was Lani Kailiponi (1889-1972), a Hawaiian musician and composer who played a significant role in reviving and preserving traditional Hawaiian music. Her compositions, such as "Hi'ilawe" and "Puamana," became beloved classics and celebrated the beauty and spirit of the Hawaiian culture.
In the realm of sports, Lani Muir (1957-2021) was a renowned Hawaiian surfer and pioneer in the world of women's surfing. She won multiple championships and helped pave the way for the recognition of women's surfing as a professional sport.
Lani Moo Young (born 1962) is a prominent Hawaiian activist and educator who has dedicated her life to promoting and preserving the Hawaiian language and culture. She has been a vocal advocate for the rights of Native Hawaiians and has played a crucial role in revitalizing the use of the Hawaiian language in education and community settings.
Lani Guinier (born 1950) is an American lawyer, scholar, and civil rights activist. Although not of Hawaiian descent, her name has gained recognition for her work on issues of race, equality, and democratic participation. She has held prestigious positions at various universities, including Harvard Law School and the University of Pennsylvania.
While these are just a few examples, the name Lani has been carried by many individuals throughout history, each contributing to the rich tapestry of Hawaiian culture, arts, and activism.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Lani
People
Lani + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lani as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lani: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lani?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6,415 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lani 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 53,430 US residents.
Is Lani a common name?
We classify Lani as "Rare". It ranks above 97% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 7,424 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lani most popular?
The single biggest year for Lani was 1979, when 143 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lani is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lani in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 7,467 people with the name Lani, or 2.47 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #3,000 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 Lani 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 Lani?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lani leans strongly female. 7,206 people counted with this name were female (96.6%), compared with 257 male bearers (3.4%). 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 Lani?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lani is White at 53.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.6%) and Hispanic (10.9%). 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 Lani most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Lani in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.2% (3,972 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 Lani in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lani a female name?
Yes, 97.5% of people registered as Lani 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 Lani still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lani 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 Lani 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 common is the name Lani?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.