Meilani
Feminine · “Second element: Hawaiian lani”
Meilani belongs to a family of names built on the Hawaiian word lani — heaven, sky, the royal above — the same element that carries Leilani, Kailani and Noelani. It is a young name in American records, arriving only in the last few decades, and it has been climbing steadily rather than arriving all at once. Three even syllables, a long open middle, and an ending most people have already heard sung.
How old is the name Meilani?
Meilani first appears in US birth records in 1982 — 43 years ago. The typical Meilani is a kid of about 6 — this name's wave is very recent. About 3,900 people named Meilani are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Meilani most popular?
Meilani peaked in 2025, reaching #590 nationally. Today it ranks #590, exactly where it peaked. See the whole 2025 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Meilani
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. Meilani is one of those newer growths: a modern American formation on a Hawaiian frame, appearing in the national records only in recent decades. Its strength in the West and in Florida follows the same paths the older -lani names took.
Meaningscholars disagree
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.
Pronouncing 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.
Nicknames for Meilani
High
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
- 1982
- Most girls named
- 2025498 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #590reached in 2025
- Change vs 2024
- +46.0%498 in 2025, from 341
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.
Meilani in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Leilani in Hawaiian — related form
- Lani in Hawaiian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Meilanis among us
people named Meilani are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 3,227 born in 2025 was named Meilani
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 Richelle test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Meilani's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Richelle climbed just as high around 1969, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Richelle's path sketches the road Meilani is walking now.
Meilani 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 Meilani is headed
Meilani 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.
Meilani beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Meilani in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- 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.
- Sits comfortably in Hawaiian, Chinese American and English-speaking households, which few names of this shape manage.
- 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.
- The whole -lani group is growing. A child with this name is very unlikely to meet another, but the sound itself will keep getting more familiar around her.
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What they receive
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Meilani
Feminine · #590 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Meilanis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,900 people named Meilani are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Meilani in 2025?
- Meilani ranks #590 among US girl names in 2025, with 498 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Meilani?
- About 1 in every 3,227 US girls born in 2025 was named Meilani — 498 in all.
- Will my child share the name Meilani with classmates?
- Meilani will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Meilani
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Marigold#590 · Paris#592 · Chaya#587 · Makenna#593 · Alia#587 · Mara#587 · Jennifer#586 · Reyna#594
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Meilani? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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