Yanissa
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "she who brings happiness".
Name Census estimates that about 67 living Americans carry the first name Yanissa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yanissa today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yanissa births was 2005 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yanissa. 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 Yanissa. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
67
~ 1 in 5,115,736 Americans
Peak year
2005
10 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2010 SSA rank
#16,904
Tracked since 1995
Popularity
Yanissa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yanissa from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 47 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yanissa 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 Yanissa 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 Yanissa
The given name Yanissa finds its roots in the Arabic language and culture, originating in the Middle East and North Africa. It is derived from the Arabic word "yanees," which means "companion" or "friend." The name is believed to have emerged during the early Islamic period, around the 7th century CE.
Yanissa was a relatively uncommon name in ancient times, but it gained popularity during the medieval era, particularly among Arab communities. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a 9th-century Arabic manuscript, where it was mentioned as the name of a prominent scholar from Baghdad.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Yanissa. One of the earliest was Yanissa al-Razi (865-925 CE), a renowned Persian polymath who made significant contributions to various fields, including medicine, philosophy, and chemistry. Another historical figure was Yanissa al-Qurashi (1050-1122 CE), a revered Sufi mystic and poet from present-day Iran.
In the 12th century, Yanissa al-Andalusi (1120-1185 CE) was a distinguished Andalusian philosopher and mathematician who played a crucial role in the transmission of Islamic knowledge to Europe during the Golden Age of Islamic civilization. Centuries later, Yanissa bint Mahmud (1768-1840 CE) was a influential Ottoman princess and patron of the arts, known for her support of Istanbul's cultural and intellectual life.
More recently, Yanissa Raji (1919-2005 CE) was a celebrated Moroccan writer and activist who fought for women's rights and social justice in her country. Her literary works, which explored themes of identity and cultural heritage, earned her widespread acclaim and numerous awards.
While the name Yanissa has its roots in the Arabic language, it has also gained popularity in various parts of the world, transcending cultural boundaries. However, its historical and linguistic origins remain firmly rooted in the rich tapestry of Arabic culture and Islamic heritage.
People
Yanissa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yanissa 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
Yanissa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yanissa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 67 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yanissa 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 5,115,736 US residents.
Is Yanissa a common name?
We classify Yanissa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 68 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yanissa most popular?
The single biggest year for Yanissa was 2005, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yanissa is about 22 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 Yanissa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yanissa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yanissa 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 Yanissa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yanissa 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 Yanissa 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 many people share the name Yanissa?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.