Ymani
A feminine name of African origin meaning "freedom" or "faith".
Name Census estimates that about 259 living Americans carry the first name Ymani. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ymani today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ymani births was 2002 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ymani. 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
259
~ 1 in 1,323,376 Americans
Peak year
2002
23 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2015 SSA rank
#14,437
Tracked since 1990
Census
Ymani in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 244 people with the first name Ymani, which placed it at #33,765 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
#33,765
National first-name rank
People counted
244
244 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
63.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ymani
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ymani is Black at 63.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.4%) and Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Ymani 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 Ymani at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American63.1% · 154
- Hispanic or Latino25.4% · 62
- Two or more races6.6% · 16
- White2.0% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 2
Popularity
Ymani: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ymani from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 128 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Ymani remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ymani 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 Ymani during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ymanis live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ymani
The name Ymani has its origins in the Yoruba language spoken in parts of West Africa, particularly in modern-day Nigeria. It is believed to have emerged in the 15th century or earlier, during the height of the powerful Oyo Empire. The name is derived from the Yoruba word "ìmànì," which means "wealth" or "prosperity."
In Yoruba culture, names often carry deep symbolic meanings and are chosen with great care. The name Ymani was traditionally given to children born into wealthy families or those who were expected to bring abundance and success to their lineage. It was a name that carried with it a sense of aspiration and hope for a prosperous future.
While the name Ymani does not appear to have been documented in any ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been part of the rich oral tradition of the Yoruba people for centuries. Some of the earliest recorded examples of the name can be found in historical records and genealogical data from the 19th century, when European explorers and missionaries began documenting the cultures and languages of West Africa.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Ymani was Ymani Ogunlade, a prominent Yoruba trader and merchant who lived in the early 19th century. He was renowned for his business acumen and is said to have amassed considerable wealth through his trading ventures across the region.
Another notable figure in history who carried the name Ymani was Ymani Abimbola, a respected Yoruba priestess and spiritual leader who lived in the late 19th century. She was renowned for her deep knowledge of traditional Yoruba customs and her ability to interpret the sacred texts and divination practices.
In the 20th century, Ymani Olatunji, a Nigerian painter and artist, gained recognition for her vibrant depictions of Yoruba culture and traditions. Her works celebrated the richness of her heritage and helped to preserve and promote the artistic legacy of her people.
Ymani Soyinka, born in 1925, was a prominent Nigerian educator and activist who dedicated her life to promoting literacy and education among underprivileged communities. Her efforts contributed significantly to the empowerment of countless individuals and the advancement of educational opportunities in Nigeria.
Lastly, Ymani Adeniran, a Nigerian-American writer and poet, has gained acclaim for her powerful and evocative works that explore themes of identity, diaspora, and the immigrant experience. Her poetry has resonated with readers around the world and has helped to amplify the voices of underrepresented communities.
People
Ymani + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ymani 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
Ymani: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ymani?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 259 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ymani 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 1,323,376 US residents.
Is Ymani a common name?
We classify Ymani as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 264 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ymani most popular?
The single biggest year for Ymani was 2002, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ymani is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ymani in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 244 people with the name Ymani, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #33,765 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 Ymani 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 Ymani?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ymani leans strongly female. 233 people counted with this name were female (94.0%), compared with 15 male bearers (6.0%). 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 Ymani?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ymani is Black at 63.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.4%) and Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Ymani most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Ymani in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.1% (154 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 Ymani in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ymani a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ymani 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 Ymani still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ymani 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 Ymani 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 Ymani?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.