Mina
Feminine
Mina is given to both — 19,267 girls and 672 boys since 1880. See Mina as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Mina is one of those short names that several languages arrived at independently — a German and Dutch clipping of Wilhelmina, a Persian word for blue enamel glass, a name written with its own characters in Japan and Korea. Two syllables, open vowels, nothing to trip over in any of them. In English it has been quietly in use for well over a century without ever crowding a classroom.
How old is the name Mina?
Mina was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Mina alive today was born around 1998, making them about 27 years old. About 13,000 people named Mina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Mina most popular?
Mina peaked in 1880, reaching #175 nationally. Today it ranks #595, 420 places below that high. See the whole 1880 chart.
Mina appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From Willahelm to Mina
The story of Mina
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. Quite separately, Persian has long used mina for blue enamel and glasswork, and the name is at home across Iran and the wider region. Japanese and Korean families write their own Mina in their own scripts, arriving at the same sound from entirely different directions.
Meaningscholars disagree
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.
How the name formed
- Willahelm
- Wilhelmina
- Mina
Related forms: Minna · مینا · 美奈 · 미나 · Wilhelmina · Мина
Pronouncing 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.
Nicknames for Mina
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
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 2025491 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #175reached in 1880
- Change vs 2022
- +0.6%491 in 2025, from 488
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.
Mina in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Minna in German — spelling variant
- مینا in Persian — transliteration
- 美奈 in Japanese — transliteration
- 미나 in Korean — transliteration
- Wilhelmina in Dutch — related form
- Мина in Serbian — transliteration
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Minas among us
people named Mina are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 3,273 born in 2025 was named Mina
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Mina 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 Mina is headed
Mina should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High 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.
Mina beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Mina in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- 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.
- Has stayed in continuous use across generations without ever becoming a name that fills a classroom.
- Comes with an old, real pet form in Minnie for anyone who wants one.
- 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.
- At two syllables it gives little room for shortening, which suits some families and leaves others wishing for a nickname.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Mina
Feminine · #595 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Minas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 13,000 people named Mina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Mina in 2025?
- Mina ranks #595 among US girl names in 2025, with 491 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Mina?
- About 1 in every 3,273 US girls born in 2025 was named Mina — 491 in all.
- Will my child share the name Mina with classmates?
- Mina will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Mina
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Avianna#595 · Tiana#595 · Halle#595 · Reyna#594 · Makenna#593 · Paris#592 · Seraphina#599 · Elliott#599
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Mina? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Mina and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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