Yonis
Arabic name meaning "son of nobility" or "man of grace".
Name Census estimates that about 412 living Americans carry the first name Yonis. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yonis today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yonis births was 2011 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yonis. 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
412
~ 1 in 831,928 Americans
Peak year
2011
26 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,928
Tracked since 1994
Popularity
Yonis: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yonis from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 178 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Yonis remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yonis 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 Yonis during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yonis' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Yonis
The name Yonis is of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "yunus," which means "whale" or "dolphin." It is closely related to the biblical name Jonah, who was famously swallowed by a whale in the Old Testament. The name has been in use for centuries in the Middle East and North Africa.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Yonis can be found in the Quran, where it is mentioned as the name of the prophet Jonah (Yunus in Arabic). According to Islamic tradition, Yonis was a messenger of God who was sent to preach to the people of Nineveh, but they rejected his message, leading to his famous encounter with the whale.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Yonis. For example, Yonis Mahmoud Effendi (1223-1298 AH, or approximately 1808-1881 CE) was an Egyptian scholar and jurist who served as the Grand Mufti of Egypt during the 19th century.
Another notable figure was Yonis Musakhanov (1835-1905), a prominent Kumyk poet and educator from the North Caucasus region of Russia. His works played a significant role in the development of Kumyk literature and the preservation of the region's cultural heritage.
In the realm of sports, Yonis Mahmoud (born 1975) is a former Egyptian footballer who played as a striker for several clubs, including Al-Ahly and the Egyptian national team. He was part of the Egyptian team that won the African Cup of Nations in 1998.
Yonis Osman Ayuba (1944-1998) was a Somali politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He played a crucial role in shaping Somalia's foreign policy during a turbulent period in the country's history.
Another notable figure was Yonis Tawfiq (1881-1960), an Egyptian writer and journalist who was a prominent figure in the literary and cultural circles of early 20th century Egypt. His works explored themes of social justice, nationalism, and the struggle for independence from British colonial rule.
While the name Yonis has its roots in the Arab world, it has also gained popularity in other regions and cultures over time, with variations in spelling and pronunciation. However, its association with the biblical and Quranic figure of Jonah remains a central part of its meaning and significance.
People
Yonis + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yonis 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
Yonis: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yonis?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 412 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yonis 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 831,928 US residents.
Is Yonis a common name?
We classify Yonis as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 416 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yonis most popular?
The single biggest year for Yonis was 2011, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yonis is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Yonis a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yonis in the SSA data are male. 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.