Head to head · Girls' names
Aliza vs Amani
#675 vs #678 in 2025 · Hebrew vs Arabic roots · both holding its place on the charts
Aliza is a whisker ahead (#675 vs #678 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name will.
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Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Aliza leads 3 measures of 6; Amani leads 2.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1950s: Aliza #4867, Amani — — Aliza higher
- 1960s: Aliza #2970, Amani #6617 — Aliza higher
- 1970s: Aliza #2015, Amani #5689 — Aliza higher
- 1980s: Aliza #1707, Amani #4295 — Aliza higher
- 1990s: Aliza #1381, Amani #1273 — Amani higher
- 2000s: Aliza #833, Amani #659 — Amani higher
- 2010s: Aliza #780, Amani #657 — Amani higher
- 2020s: Aliza #682, Amani #644 — Amani higher
The decades split evenly, 4 each; Amani has held the lead since the 1990s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Aliza | Amani |
|---|---|---|
| 1950s | #4867 | — |
| 1960s | #2970 | #6617 |
| 1970s | #2015 | #5689 |
| 1980s | #1707 | #4295 |
| 1990s | #1381 | #1273 |
| 2000s | #833 | #659 |
| 2010s | #780 | #657 |
| 2020s | #682 | #644 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Aliza
joyful, merry (Hebrew)
In Hebrew, aliza (עַלִיזָה) is a real adjective meaning cheerful or merry, from the root ʿ-l-z, "to rejoice," which appears in the Hebrew Bible. That reading is solid for the Hebrew name. But the same spelling in English is also used as a variant of Alisa or Alyssa, which run back through Alice to a Germanic root meaning "noble" — so which meaning a given Aliza carries depends on which road her family came by.
ʿalaz (Hebrew verb, to rejoice) → aliz → Aliza
How it traveled
The Hebrew adjective aliz, feminine aliza, means merry or joyful, and its root turns up in the Psalms in verbs of rejoicing. As modern Hebrew was revived and everyday words were pressed into service as given names, Aliza became a standard Israeli name and traveled with Jewish families to English-speaking countries.
Amani
"Peace" in Swahili; "wishes, aspirations" in Arabic
Swahili amani means peace or calm, borrowed long ago from Arabic amān, "safety, security." Separately, Arabic أماني (amānī) is the plural of umniya, "a wish" — a long-established feminine name in Arabic-speaking countries. Both readings are solid in their own languages; which one a family means depends on where the name reached them. The shared root ʼ-m-n, carrying the sense of trust and security, sits under both.
amān (Arabic, "safety") → amani (Swahili, "peace") → Amani
How it traveled
The root behind Amani is one of the busiest in Arabic: ʼ-m-n, from which come words for faith, safety and trust, and names such as Iman and Amina. Arabic amān, "security," passed along the Indian Ocean trade routes into Swahili, where it settled as amani, the ordinary word used for peace along the East African coast — the word in the Swahili greeting and in political slogans alike.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Aliza
ah-LEE-zah
Many American speakers say uh-LEE-zuh, which is the same name with softer vowels. Israeli Hebrew puts the stress on the last syllable: ah-lee-ZAH. All three are heard and none is wrong.
- Ali — The everyday short form; also stands alone as a given name for both girls and boys.
- Liza — Informal, and a full given name in its own right through Elizabeth.
- Lizzie — Family and playground use rather than anything written down.
- Zaza — A household nickname, used mostly with young children.
Amani
ah-MAH-nee
Stress on the middle syllable in both Swahili and Arabic. Some American speakers say uh-MAH-nee with a lighter first vowel; both are widely accepted. The main mishearing is Armani, the Italian surname and fashion label, so the name is sometimes repeated once on the phone.
- Mani — The most common informal clip in English-speaking use; also stands alone as a given name in several languages.
- Ami — Family shortening from the front of the name; overlaps with Amy in speech.
- Nani — Affectionate, mostly used by close family and by younger children who cannot manage the full four syllables.
- Ama — Occasional informal short form; a given name in its own right in parts of West Africa.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Aliza if you want…
On the measures here, the records do not separate Aliza from Amani.
Choose Amani if you want…
- a name holding steadyAmani is holding its place on the charts
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Aliza
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds — a listener who hears it can usually write it, once they know it isn't Eliza.
- Two ready-made short forms, Ali and Liza, both of which work as standalone names.
- Travels across Hebrew, English and Urdu-speaking communities without changing shape.
To consider
- It lives next door to Eliza, Alisa, Aliyah and Alyssa, so expect a lifetime of gentle corrections — the spelling will need repeating, and people will occasionally default to Eliza.
- Two common pronunciations circulate, ah-LEE-zah and uh-LEE-zuh, plus the Hebrew final-syllable stress. Worth deciding which one your family uses, because she will be introducing herself with it.
- She is unlikely to share the name with a classmate. That means no last-initial problem, and also that the name will need spelling out more often than a Sarah ever would.
Amani
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds and read correctly by most English speakers on sight, with no silent letters and no competing spellings to correct.
- A real, current word for peace in Swahili — a meaning that can be explained in three words to a child or a stranger.
- At home in Arabic, Swahili and English alike, which matters in a family that spans more than one of them.
To consider
- Imani is considerably more familiar in the US, and Amani gets corrected to it fairly often — in email, on rosters, by teachers reading a list aloud. One extra beat of clarification, for life.
- The name is given to boys as well as girls, particularly in Arabic- and Swahili-speaking communities and in American sports; a girl named Amani will occasionally be assumed male on paper.
- Armani is the closest sound-alike in American ears, so expect the label joke once or twice in the school years.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Aliza and Amani in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Names with a Z in them
- The names with the most spellings
- Borrowed from the boys: names girls are winning
- African names with radiant meanings
- all guides
Where Aliza and Amani each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Aliza or Amani — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Aliza or Amani?
- Aliza, in 2025: Aliza ranked #675 with 420 babies; Amani ranked #678 with 419 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Aliza or Amani?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Aliza moved down 6 places; Amani moved down 19 places.
- Which is the older name, Aliza or Amani?
- Aliza entered the US charts in 1952; Amani entered the US charts in 1969. On the American record, Aliza is the older name.
- How many people are named Aliza and Amani?
- About 12,000 people named Aliza are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 13,500 people named Amani are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Alizas or Amanis in the classroom?
- Aliza will almost certainly be the only one in school. Amani will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
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