Aulani
Feminine · “royal messenger”
Aulani is a royal messenger in Hawaiian — the chief's herald — and it also names a resort, which is why most Americans have met the word.
How old is the name Aulani?
Aulani first appears in US birth records in 1996 — 29 years ago. The typical Aulani is a kid of about 7 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,100 people named Aulani are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Aulani most popular?
Aulani peaked in 2025, reaching #1710 nationally. Today it ranks #1710, exactly where it peaked. See the whole 2025 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From lani to Aulani
The story of Aulani
Lani closes a very large share of Hawaiian names because sky and chiefly rank share the word. Aulani is a genuine Hawaiian name, and a Hawaiian resort of that name opened in 2011. The American registers show it rising from around that year, and it is in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
royal messenger, chief's herald
Generally read from the Hawaiian ʻau, 'to travel' or a group, and lani, 'sky', 'heaven' or 'royal' — so a messenger of the chief. The lani element is entirely settled; the front is less so. A resort named Aulani opened in 2011 and gave the word wide American visibility.
How the name formed
- lani
- Aulani
Related forms: Aulani · Leilani · Kailani
Pronouncing Aulani
ow-LAH-nee
Three syllables, every vowel given a full value. The au is a diphthong like the ow in 'how'.
Nicknames for Aulani
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1996
- Most girls named
- 2025119 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1710reached in 2025
- Change vs 2024
- +26.6%119 in 2025, from 94
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Aulani in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Aulani in Hawaiian — same name
- Leilani in Hawaiian — related form
- Kailani in Hawaiian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Aulanis among us
people named Aulani are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 13,506 born in 2025 was named Aulani
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Vianca test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Aulani's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Vianca climbed just as high around 1991, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Vianca's path sketches the road Aulani is walking now.
Aulani is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Aulani is headed
Aulani should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Aulani beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Aulani in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The royal-messenger reading is concrete and the lani element is undisputed.
- Lani is available as a short form that is a complete Hawaiian name.
- Three syllables of open vowels, which carries unusually well.
- The resort association is why many Americans know the word.
- The front element's reading is less settled than the ending.
- English speakers may say AW-lani rather than the Hawaiian diphthong.
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What they receive
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Aulani
Feminine · #1710 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Aulanis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,100 people named Aulani are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Aulani in 2025?
- Aulani ranks #1710 among US girl names in 2025, with 119 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Aulani?
- About 1 in every 13,506 US girls born in 2025 was named Aulani — 119 in all.
- Will my child share the name Aulani with classmates?
- Aulani will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Aulani
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Isa#1710 · Marwa#1710 · Diya#1710 · Azara#1710 · Karoline#1710 · Aleyah#1710 · Evaluna#1710 · Azura#1710
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Aulani? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Aulani and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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