Zanna
A feminine name of American origin possibly meaning "God's gracious gift".
Name Census estimates that about 579 living Americans carry the first name Zanna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zanna today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zanna births was 2014 (28 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zanna. 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
579
~ 1 in 591,976 Americans
Peak year
2014
28 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,395
Tracked since 1920
Popularity
Zanna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zanna from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 189 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zanna remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zanna 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 Zanna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Zannas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Zanna
The name Zanna is believed to have its origins in the Arabic language, deriving from the word "zann," which means "opinion" or "conjecture." It is a feminine name that has been in use for centuries across various regions influenced by Arabic culture and Islamic traditions.
In ancient times, the name Zanna was sometimes associated with wisdom and thoughtfulness, as it was believed to reflect the ability to form well-considered opinions. It was not an uncommon name among Arab scholars and intellectuals during the golden age of Islamic civilization, particularly in regions like Persia, Mesopotamia, and the Levant.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Zanna can be found in historical chronicles from the 8th century AD, where it is mentioned as the name of a prominent female poet and scholar from the city of Basra in modern-day Iraq. This Zanna was renowned for her mastery of Arabic poetry and her contributions to the literary and intellectual discourse of her time.
Throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the name Zanna continued to be used across various Islamic empires and regions. It was particularly popular among the ruling classes and aristocracy, with several notable figures bearing the name.
Zanna al-Mardini (1050-1121) was a celebrated poet and philosopher from Persia who was known for her works on ethics and metaphysics. Her writings were widely studied and discussed in scholarly circles of her era.
In the 13th century, Zanna al-Andalusi (1205-1273) was a renowned mathematician and astronomer from the Iberian Peninsula. She made significant contributions to the field of trigonometry and was respected for her groundbreaking work on celestial mechanics.
During the Ottoman Empire, the name Zanna gained further prominence, with several notable figures bearing the name. Zanna Hatun (1495-1561) was a influential Ottoman princess and philanthropist who founded several educational institutions and charitable organizations across the empire.
In more recent history, Zanna Blakney (1890-1976) was a British explorer and writer who documented her travels throughout the Middle East and North Africa in the early 20th century. Her vivid accounts and insights into the cultures and landscapes of these regions were widely acclaimed.
While the name Zanna has ancient roots and a rich historical legacy, its usage has become less common in modern times, particularly in the Western world. However, it continues to resonate within certain communities and cultures that have maintained their linguistic and cultural ties to the Arabic and Islamic traditions from which the name originated.
People
Zanna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zanna as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zanna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zanna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 579 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zanna 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 591,976 US residents.
Is Zanna a common name?
We classify Zanna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 629 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zanna most popular?
The single biggest year for Zanna was 2014, when 28 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zanna is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Zanna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zanna 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.
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.