Navi
A feminine name of Indian origin meaning "new" or "young".
Name Census estimates that about 1,769 living Americans carry the first name Navi. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 78.2% of registrations being female. The average person named Navi today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Navi births was 2023 (243 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Navi. 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 Navi with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Navi is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 8 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 193,756 Americans
Peak year
2023
243 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,485
Tracked since 1999
Census
Navi in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 919 people with the first name Navi, which placed it at #13,223 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
#13,223
National first-name rank
People counted
919
919 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
26.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Navi
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Navi is Black at 26.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (24.0%) and White (23.7%). 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 Navi 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 Navi at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American26.8% · 246
- Hispanic or Latino24.0% · 221
- White23.7% · 218
- Asian and Pacific Islander16.1% · 148
- Two or more races8.2% · 75
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 11
Gender
Gender distribution for Navi
Navi is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,782 total registrations, 389 (21.8%) were male and 1,393 (78.2%) were female.
Navi as a male name
- Ranked #2,352 in 2024
- 60 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (67 births)
Navi as a female name
- Ranked #1,485 in 2024
- 147 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (176 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Navi on both sides of the split. Of the 920 people counted with this name, 219 were male (23.8%) and 701 were female (76.2%).
Popularity
Navi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Navi from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 982 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Navi 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 Navi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Navis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 22 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Navi, while Arizona, Indiana, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 33 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Navi
The name Navi is derived from the Sanskrit word 'navi', meaning 'new' or 'fresh'. It is believed to have originated in ancient India, where it was used as a name for both boys and girls. The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to the 5th century BCE, when it appears in various Hindu scriptures and texts.
In the Mahabharata, one of the two major Sanskrit epics, there is a character named Navi who is described as a skilled archer and warrior. This suggests that the name may have been associated with strength and bravery in ancient Indian culture.
As Hinduism spread across the Indian subcontinent, the name Navi also gained popularity in various regional languages and cultures. In the Tamil language, for example, the name is spelled as 'Navi' and has a similar meaning of 'new' or 'fresh'.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Navi was Navi Shakti, a celebrated poet and scholar who lived in the 7th century CE. He is known for his works on grammar, philosophy, and literature, and is considered a pioneer in the field of Sanskrit linguistics.
Another notable figure with the name Navi was Navi Kalidas, a renowned playwright and poet who lived in the 4th century CE. He is credited with writing some of the greatest works of Sanskrit literature, including the play 'Abhijnanashakuntalam' and the epic poem 'Kumārasambhava'.
In the realm of spirituality and religion, the name Navi is associated with the 9th-century Hindu philosopher and saint, Navi Shankara. He is revered as one of the most influential figures in the Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy, and his teachings have had a lasting impact on the spiritual traditions of India.
Moving forward in time, the name Navi also appears in the historical records of the Mughal Empire in India. Navi Khan was a prominent military commander who served under the Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 16th century. He played a crucial role in several military campaigns and is remembered for his strategic acumen and leadership.
Another notable figure with the name Navi was Navi Pillay, a South African jurist and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Born in 1941, she was a pioneering figure in the fight against apartheid and has been a vocal advocate for human rights and social justice on the global stage.
Overall, the name Navi has a rich history and cultural significance, with roots that can be traced back to ancient India. Throughout the centuries, it has been associated with individuals who have made significant contributions in fields ranging from literature and philosophy to religion, politics, and human rights.
People
Navi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Navi as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Navi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Navi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,769 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Navi 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 193,756 US residents.
Is Navi a common name?
We classify Navi as "Rare". It ranks above 93.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,782 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Navi most popular?
The single biggest year for Navi was 2023, when 243 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Navi is about 8 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Navi in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 919 people with the name Navi, or 0.30 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,223 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 Navi 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 Navi?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Navi on both sides of the split. Of the 920 people counted with this name, 219 were male (23.8%) and 701 were female (76.2%). 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 Navi?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Navi is Black at 26.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (24.0%) and White (23.7%). 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 Navi most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Navi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 26.8% (246 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 Navi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Navi a female name?
Yes, 78.2% of people registered as Navi 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 Navi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Navi 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 Navi 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 called Navi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.