girls' name ★ peaked 2007

Sarai

Meaning courtyard; dwelling; palace Gender Girl Rank 2025 #425 Trend → Stable

From Persian سرای (sarây, “courtyard; dwelling; palace”).

Rank 2025
#425
among girls · ↑19 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
733
named Sarai · +4% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,193
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2007
818 babies
All-time total
22,925
#971 all-time among girls
First recorded
1953
in Social Security records

Sarai popularity over time

22,925 babies have been named Sarai since 1953, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.130.250.380.518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s 19 – 19 2 – #4,827
1960s 115 – 115 12 +505% #2,853
1970s 362 – 362 36 +215% #1,566
1980s 1,199 – 1,199 120 +231% #963
1990s 3,243 6 3,249 325 +171% #565
2000s 6,516 – 6,516 652 +101% #398
2010s 7,209 – 7,209 721 +11% #409
2020s (to 2025) 4,256 – 4,256 709 -2% #408

Where Sarai is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 738 0.46 #424
2027 743 0.46 #421
2028 746 0.46 #421
2029 750 0.47 #417
2030 752 0.47 #416

Where Sarai is most popular

Girls named Sarai per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.444 per 1,000. Strongest in Hawaii, District of Columbia, and Connecticut.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Sarai born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Hawaii 17 1.48 +234%
District of Columbia 12 1.01 +128%
Connecticut 58 0.997 +124%
Nevada 45 0.969 +118%
Florida 400 0.935 +110%
Georgia 198 0.872 +96%
Maryland 92 0.868 +95%
New Jersey 146 0.809 +82%
New York 313 0.790 +78%
Massachusetts 83 0.686 +54%
Louisiana 59 0.674 +52%
Virginia 112 0.657 +48%
Pennsylvania 138 0.584 +31%
South Carolina 52 0.578 +30%
California 475 0.565 +27%
Delaware 6 0.529 +19%
Illinois 115 0.502 +13%
Texas 385 0.479 +8%
North Carolina 107 0.470 +6%
Alabama 44 0.469 +5%
Arizona 60 0.428 ≈ national
New Mexico 10 0.411 -7%
Rhode Island 5 0.399 -10%
Ohio 92 0.388 -13%
Michigan 67 0.368 -17%
Tennessee 53 0.335 -25%
Arkansas 17 0.322 -28%
Indiana 45 0.321 -28%
Oregon 20 0.307 -31%
Wisconsin 30 0.291 -34%
Oklahoma 21 0.285 -36%
Nebraska 10 0.278 -37%
Washington 40 0.277 -38%
Kansas 15 0.260 -42%
Mississippi 11 0.235 -47%
Colorado 24 0.215 -52%
Iowa 11 0.188 -58%
Missouri 20 0.166 -63%
Utah 11 0.132 -70%
Kentucky 10 0.117 -74%
Minnesota 10 0.093 -79%
Alaska – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Sarai

Sarai is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #425 in 2025 with 733 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1953, 22,925 American babies have been named Sarai. Its peak came in 2007, when 818 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Sarai stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Sarai?

The median living Sarai is about 15 years old; half are between 7 and 24. An estimated 23 thousand people named Sarai are alive in the United States today.

median 15 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Sarai year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 733 #425 – –
2024 702 #444 – –
2023 749 #408 – –
2022 737 #429 – –
2021 685 #458 – –
2020 650 #473 – –
2019 728 #437 – –
2018 756 #409 – –
2017 720 #440 – –
2016 645 #485 – –
2015 722 #439 – –
2014 714 #449 – –
2013 725 #420 – –
2012 757 #416 – –
2011 701 #443 – –
2010 741 #424 – –
2009 786 #403 – –
2008 798 #404 – –
2007 818 #398 – –
2006 720 #443 – –
2005 656 #464 – –
2004 623 #473 – –
2003 642 #464 – –
2002 528 #518 – –
2001 480 #549 – –
2000 465 #560 – –
1995 345 #631 – –
1990 220 #881 – –
1985 134 #1,089 – –
1980 84 #1,458 – –
1975 30 #2,602 – –
1970 21 #3,182 – –
1965 12 #3,915 – –
1960 7 #5,609 – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Sarai, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Sarai?

The median living Sarai is about 15 years old. Half of all living Sarais are between 7 and 24 years old.

How many people named Sarai are alive today?

An estimated 23 thousand people named Sarai are alive in the United States, based on 22,925 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Sarai mean?

From Persian سرای (sarây, “courtyard; dwelling; palace”).

How popular is the name Sarai in 2025?

Sarai ranked #425 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 733 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Sarai?

22,925 babies have been named Sarai in the United States since 1953, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Sarai most popular?

Sarai peaked in 2007, when 818 newborns received the name.

Is Sarai a boy or girl name?

Sarai is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Sarai rising or falling?

Sarai has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Sarai become more popular?

Sarai looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 752 girls named Sarai in 2030, ranking around #416. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Names like Sarai

Names that sound and feel close to Sarai: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Sarai with similar names → More names starting with S →