Haniya
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "bliss" or "happiness".
Name Census estimates that about 1,143 living Americans carry the first name Haniya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Haniya today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Haniya births was 2016 (97 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Haniya. 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 Haniya with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Haniya is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 10 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 299,873 Americans
Peak year
2016
97 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,532
Tracked since 1997
Census
Haniya in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 770 people with the first name Haniya, which placed it at #15,057 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
#15,057
National first-name rank
People counted
770
770 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
76.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haniya
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Haniya is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.9%. The next largest groups are Black (13.6%) and White (4.8%). 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 Haniya 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 Haniya at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander76.9% · 592
- Black or African American13.6% · 105
- White4.8% · 37
- Two or more races3.1% · 24
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 3
Popularity
Haniya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Haniya 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 631 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Haniya remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Haniya 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 Haniya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Haniyas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. New York, Illinois, California recorded the most babies named Haniya, while Michigan, Massachusetts, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 52 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Haniya
The name Haniya has its roots in the Arabic language and culture, originating from the Arabic word "hana," which means "happiness" or "joy." This name has been used for centuries in the Middle East and Islamic regions, reflecting the desire for parents to bestow their children with a sense of contentment and delight.
In its early days, the name Haniya was primarily found in ancient Arabic texts and Islamic scriptures, where it was often associated with the concept of inner peace and tranquility. One of the earliest recorded instances of this name can be traced back to the 7th century, when it was mentioned in the Qur'an, the holy book of Islam.
Throughout the centuries, the name Haniya has been borne by several notable figures, both in the Islamic world and beyond. One such individual was Haniya al-Andalusiya (1095-1180), a renowned poet and scholar from Andalusia, Spain, who was celebrated for her literary works and contributions to the field of poetry.
Another prominent figure was Haniya al-Ghudamisi (1156-1216), a Sufi mystic and philosopher from modern-day Algeria. Her teachings and writings on spirituality and self-discovery had a profound impact on the intellectual landscape of her time.
In the 19th century, Haniya Saadat (1830-1918), an influential Iranian poet and writer, gained recognition for her poignant verses and her advocacy for women's education and empowerment.
Haniya Rashid (1905-1988), a pioneering Egyptian feminist and activist, was also a notable bearer of this name. She played a crucial role in the women's rights movement in Egypt and worked tirelessly to promote gender equality and social justice.
More recently, Haniya Amir (1957-), a Pakistani actress and television host, has made a mark in the entertainment industry, captivating audiences with her versatile performances and charismatic presence.
While the name Haniya has its roots in the Arabic language, it has transcended cultural boundaries and has been embraced by various communities around the world, each adding their own unique perspectives and interpretations to its meaning and significance.
People
Haniya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Haniya as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with H
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Haniya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Haniya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,143 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Haniya 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 299,873 US residents.
Is Haniya a common name?
We classify Haniya as "Rare". It ranks above 90.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,152 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Haniya most popular?
The single biggest year for Haniya was 2016, when 97 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Haniya is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Haniya in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 770 people with the name Haniya, or 0.25 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,057 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 Haniya 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 Haniya?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Haniya appears almost entirely female. Of the 775 people counted with this name, 99.5% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Haniya?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Haniya is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.9%. The next largest groups are Black (13.6%) and White (4.8%). 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 Haniya most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Haniya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.9% (592 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 Haniya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Haniya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Haniya 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 Haniya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Haniya 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 Haniya 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 have the name Haniya?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.