Xiani
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "blesser" or "blessing".
Name Census estimates that about 29 living Americans carry the first name Xiani. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Xiani today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Xiani births was 2009 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Xiani. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Xiani. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
29
~ 1 in 11,819,115 Americans
Peak year
2009
6 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2023 SSA rank
#15,078
Tracked since 2009
Popularity
Xiani: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Xiani from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 12 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
Xiani 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 Xiani during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Xiani
The given name Xiani is believed to have originated from the ancient Etruscan civilization, which flourished in what is now modern-day Italy between the 8th and 3rd centuries BC. The name is derived from the Etruscan word "Xian," meaning "moon" or "lunar deity," reflecting the significance of celestial bodies in Etruscan culture and mythology.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Xiani can be found in an Etruscan inscription dating back to the 5th century BC, discovered in the archaeological site of Cerveteri, near Rome. This inscription mentions a woman named "Xiani Tarchunies," suggesting the name's usage among the Etruscan nobility or priesthood.
In the 2nd century BC, a Greek historian named Polybius mentioned a wealthy Etruscan woman named Xiani in his historical accounts. This reference provides further evidence of the name's prevalence during the later stages of the Etruscan civilization.
During the Roman Empire era, a few individuals bearing the name Xiani are mentioned in ancient Roman texts and inscriptions. One notable example is Xiani Rufus, a Roman merchant who lived in the 1st century AD and is recorded in a business transaction document from the city of Pompeii.
In the 3rd century AD, a Christian martyr named Xiani of Carthage is documented in early Christian writings. She was reportedly executed during the Decian persecution under the Roman Emperor Decius for refusing to renounce her faith.
In the 6th century, a Byzantine noblewoman named Xiani Anthemius is mentioned in historical records as the wife of a prominent military commander during the reign of Emperor Justinian I. This suggests the name's continued use in the Eastern Roman Empire.
In the medieval period, a few scattered references to individuals named Xiani can be found in various historical documents and records from different regions of Europe. However, the name appears to have been relatively uncommon during this time.
It is worth noting that the name Xiani has been relatively rare throughout history, with only a handful of documented instances. This scarcity of recorded examples may be attributed to the decline of the Etruscan civilization and the subsequent assimilation of their culture into the Roman world, leading to the gradual disappearance of many Etruscan names.
People
Xiani + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Xiani as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with X
Other first names starting with X with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Xiani: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Xiani?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 29 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Xiani 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 11,819,115 US residents.
Is Xiani a common name?
We classify Xiani as "Very Rare". It ranks above 46% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 29 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Xiani most popular?
The single biggest year for Xiani was 2009, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Xiani is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Xiani in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Xiani a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Xiani 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 Xiani still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Xiani 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 Xiani 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Xiani?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the name Xiani at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.