Iman
Feminine · “faith”
Iman is given to both — 5,124 girls and 1,485 boys since 1880. See Iman as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Iman is faith in Arabic — and the root behind it is the same one that gives the word amen, which means firmness.
How old is the name Iman?
Iman first appears in US birth records in 1975 — 50 years ago. The typical Iman alive today was born around 2004, making them about 21 years old. About 5,100 people named Iman are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Iman most popular?
Iman peaked in 1996, reaching #1042 nationally. Today it ranks #2064, 1,022 places below that high. See the whole 1996 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From '-m-n to Iman
The story of Iman
A famous hadith sets out islam as the outward practice, iman as the inward faith and ihsan as excellence in both — three named levels of one thing. The root ties belief to firmness across Hebrew and Arabic alike. Iman the Somali model made the name internationally known. It is in current American use.
Meaning
faith, belief
From the Arabic iman, 'faith', from the root '-m-n, 'to be firm, secure, trustworthy'. The same Semitic root gives the Hebrew emunah and the word amen. In Islamic theology iman is one of the three levels of religion alongside islam and ihsan. The Arabic is documented.
How the name formed
- '-m-n
- iman
- Iman
Related forms: إيمان · Iman · Eman
Pronouncing Iman
ee-MAHN
Two syllables, stress on the second. English speakers often say EE-man with the stress at the front.
Nicknames for Iman
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
- 1975
- Most girls named
- 1996178 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1042reached in 1996
- Change vs 2024
- −1.1%91 in 2025, from 92
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.
Iman in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- إيمان in Arabic — transliteration
- Iman in Persian — same name
- Eman in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, New York, Texas.
Imans among us
people named Iman are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 17,662 born in 2025 was named Iman
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Iman
- #2064
- Iman on the 2025 chart
- #833
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Iman went to 91 girls in 2025, but Imaan is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 127, which makes it the 833rd most-given girls’ name of the year — 1,231 places above the chart.
- Iman91
- Imaan36
About 1 girl in 12,656 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 17,662 for Iman itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Karena test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Iman's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Karena climbed just as high around 1974, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Karena's path sketches the road Iman is walking now.
Iman sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Iman is headed
Iman should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium 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.
Iman beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Iman in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That faith and firmness share a Semitic root is a first-rate etymology.
- The theological structure of islam, iman and ihsan is a genuinely good frame.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk once heard.
- In Arabic and Persian it is used for both sexes.
- An imam is a different word entirely and is often confused with it.
- English speakers regularly stress the first syllable wrongly.
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What they receive
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Iman
Feminine · #2064 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Imans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 5,100 people named Iman are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Iman?
- Iman is the most-used spelling in US records — 91 of the 127 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Imaan.
- How popular is the name Iman in 2025?
- Iman ranks #2064 among US girl names in 2025, with 91 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Iman?
- About 1 in every 17,662 US girls born in 2025 was named Iman — 91 in all.
- Will my child share the name Iman with classmates?
- Iman will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Iman
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Abilene#2064 · Annabel#2064 · Nylani#2064 · Edie#2064 · Ryla#2064 · Annaliese#2064 · Devora#2064 · Bobbie#2064
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Iman? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Iman and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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