Head to head · Girls' names
Meilani vs Mina
#590 vs #595 in 2025
Meilani is a whisker ahead (#590 vs #595 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Meilani is climbing the charts fast, Mina is holding its place on the charts.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
The tape is even: Meilani and Mina each lead 3 measures of 6.
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
- 1880s: Meilani —, Mina #217 — Mina higher
- 1890s: Meilani —, Mina #278 — Mina higher
- 1900s: Meilani —, Mina #391 — Mina higher
- 1910s: Meilani —, Mina #501 — Mina higher
- 1920s: Meilani —, Mina #653 — Mina higher
- 1930s: Meilani —, Mina #734 — Mina higher
- 1940s: Meilani —, Mina #966 — Mina higher
- 1950s: Meilani —, Mina #1328 — Mina higher
- 1960s: Meilani —, Mina #1582 — Mina higher
- 1970s: Meilani —, Mina #2042 — Mina higher
- 1980s: Meilani #7757, Mina #1818 — Mina higher
- 1990s: Meilani #8482, Mina #1449 — Mina higher
- 2000s: Meilani #5807, Mina #972 — Mina higher
- 2010s: Meilani #3066, Mina #756 — Mina higher
- 2020s: Meilani #863, Mina #609 — Mina higher
Mina stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Meilani | Mina |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #217 |
| 1890s | — | #278 |
| 1900s | — | #391 |
| 1910s | — | #501 |
| 1920s | — | #653 |
| 1930s | — | #734 |
| 1940s | — | #966 |
| 1950s | — | #1328 |
| 1960s | — | #1582 |
| 1970s | — | #2042 |
| 1980s | #7757 | #1818 |
| 1990s | #8482 | #1449 |
| 2000s | #5807 | #972 |
| 2010s | #3066 | #756 |
| 2020s | #863 | #609 |
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
Meilani
Second element: Hawaiian lani, "heaven, sky, royal"; the first element is read more than one way
The -lani half is not in doubt. The Mei- half is read two ways: as Hawaiian mei, and as Chinese 美 (měi), "beautiful" — a reading that fits families where the two languages meet. A third possibility is simpler still: Meilani as a reshaping of Leilani, or a meeting of Melanie with the -lani names. No one of these has been established over the others.
How it traveled
The name's second half is genuinely and demonstrably Hawaiian: lani, meaning heaven, sky, or that which is royal and exalted, one of the most productive elements in the Hawaiian naming tradition. Names carrying it — Leilani above all — traveled from the islands into mainland American use across the twentieth century, and once a pattern is familiar, new names grow on it.
Mina
Depends on the road: Persian 'enamel, azure glass'; as a European short form, it carries the meaning of the longer name behind it
Mina is not one name with a disputed meaning so much as several names that met at one spelling. In German, Dutch and Scandinavian use it is a clipped form of Wilhelmina (from Germanic elements for 'will' and 'helmet, protection') or of Hermina. In Persian, mina is a word for blue enamel or glasswork, and also names a flower. In Japanese it is written with various character combinations, each giving its own sense — commonly 'beautiful' plus another element. In the Balkans it also serves as a short form of Milena, and in Arabic-speaking families as one of Amina.
Willahelm → Wilhelmina → Mina
How it traveled
The European Mina is a worn-down Wilhelmina, a name that spread through German and Dutch households and traveled with them; the full form was heavy and the short form did all the daily work. Bram Stoker gave the pairing to English readers in Dracula, where Wilhelmina Murray goes by Mina throughout.
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
Meilani
may-LAH-nee
Both the Hawaiian and Mandarin readings of the first syllable land close to "may". Some families say mye-LAH-nee. Stress sits on the second syllable either way.
- Lani — The most common short form, and a given name in its own right in American records.
- Mei — Used by families who read the first syllable as the Chinese element; also a standalone given name.
- Mei-Mei — Informal, household use, mostly for small children.
- Lanie — Informal English-style spelling of the short form.
- Also Mel.
Mina
MEE-nuh
MEE-nuh is the usual reading in English, Persian, Japanese and Korean use. Older German and Dutch families may say MIN-uh, closer to Minna, and a few English speakers guess MY-nuh on first sight. One correction usually settles it.
- Minnie — The long-established English pet form of Mina and Wilhelmina; also used as a given name in its own right.
- Min — Informal, family-level shortening; rarely written down.
- Mimi — Affectionate form, more common in French- and Italian-speaking use, and a standalone name too.
- Minka — Diminutive found in Dutch and Slavic use, and independently a given name.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Meilani if you want…
- a name on the way upup 299 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itMeilani runs 3 syllables, Mina 2
- a newer arrivalMeilani entered the US charts in 1982
Choose Mina if you want…
- a name holding steadyMina is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesMina is 2 syllables to Meilani's 3
- a long American recordMina was already in use when US records began in 1880
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
Meilani
Strengths
- The -lani ending is already familiar from Leilani, so most English speakers place the name and its rhythm on first hearing.
- It reads as it sounds for English speakers: three syllables, no silent letters, no competing pronunciations to explain.
- Two ready short forms that already stand alone as names in their own right: Lani and Mei.
To consider
- It will be heard as Leilani, and written as Melani, Meilany or Melanie, more often than you would like. A short spelling-out becomes routine.
- The meaning is genuinely unsettled in its first half. If you want a name whose translation you can state in one line, this one asks you to pick a reading and know it is a choice.
- Meilani is a recent coinage on a Hawaiian pattern rather than a traditional Hawaiian name. That matters to some families with island ties, and is worth knowing before someone else mentions it.
Mina
Strengths
- Four letters, two syllables, and phonetic on the page — most people spell it right the first time after hearing it once.
- Works unchanged in German, Dutch, Persian, Japanese, Korean and Serbian, which is rare for a name this short.
- Stands on its own as a full given name, but also sits ready as the short form of Wilhelmina or Amina if you want a longer name on the certificate.
To consider
- It lives among close neighbors: Mia, Nina, Tina and Mila are all in heavy use, and Mina will occasionally be heard or written as one of them. Repeating it is usually enough.
- Because the same spelling arrives from Persian, East Asian and Germanic roots, people may assume a background your family does not have — sometimes an interesting conversation, sometimes a tiring one.
- MEE-nuh and MIN-uh both have real claim to the spelling, so expect to state your preference now and then.
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 Meilani and Mina 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
Still torn between Meilani and Mina?
Put both to the vote.
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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
Where Meilani and Mina each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Meilani or Mina — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Meilani or Mina?
- Meilani, in 2025: Meilani ranked #590 with 498 babies; Mina ranked #595 with 491 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Meilani or Mina?
- Meilani. Over the last five years Meilani moved up 299 places; Mina moved up 66 places.
- Which is the older name, Meilani or Mina?
- Meilani entered the US charts in 1982; Mina was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Mina is the older name.
- How many people are named Meilani and Mina?
- About 3,900 people named Meilani are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 13,000 people named Mina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Meilanis or Minas in the classroom?
- Meilani will almost certainly be the only one in school. Mina 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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