Yazhini
A feminine name of Tamil origin meaning "victory".
Name Census estimates that about 106 living Americans carry the first name Yazhini. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yazhini today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yazhini births was 2018 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yazhini. 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 Yazhini with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
106
~ 1 in 3,233,531 Americans
Peak year
2018
16 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,378
Tracked since 2011
Popularity
Yazhini: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yazhini from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 73 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Yazhini remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yazhini 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 Yazhini 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 Yazhini
The name Yazhini originates from the Tamil language spoken in the southern regions of India and Sri Lanka. Its roots can be traced back to ancient Tamil literature and inscriptions dating back to the 3rd century BCE.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Yazhini can be found in the Sangam literature, a body of classical Tamil literature that flourished between the 3rd century BCE and 3rd century CE. In these texts, the name is mentioned in connection with various Tamil deities and mythological figures.
The name Yazhini is derived from the Tamil word "yaazh," which means "to praise" or "to worship." This suggests that the name may have been associated with religious or spiritual connotations in its early usage.
In the 7th century CE, a Tamil poet named Yazhini Nayanar gained significant recognition for her devotional verses dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva. She is considered one of the most revered female poets in Tamil literary history and her works are still widely studied and celebrated today.
During the 11th century, a prominent Tamil philosopher and scholar named Yazhini Manavala Mamunigal made significant contributions to the field of Tamil grammar and linguistics. His treatises on Tamil language and literature are regarded as seminal works in the field.
In the 16th century, a Tamil queen named Yazhini Nachiyar played a crucial role in the resistance against the British East India Company's expansion in southern India. Her bravery and leadership during the struggles against colonial rule have made her a revered figure in Tamil history.
The name Yazhini continued to be used throughout the centuries and has been borne by notable individuals across various fields, including literature, philosophy, and politics. Its enduring legacy and deep-rooted cultural connections make it a cherished name within the Tamil-speaking communities of South Asia.
People
Yazhini + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yazhini as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yazhini: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yazhini?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 106 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yazhini 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 3,233,531 US residents.
Is Yazhini a common name?
We classify Yazhini as "Very Rare". It ranks above 65.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 107 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yazhini most popular?
The single biggest year for Yazhini was 2018, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yazhini is about 8 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 Yazhini in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yazhini a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yazhini 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 Yazhini still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yazhini 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 Yazhini 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 Yazhini?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.