Girl · #4,985 in 2026

Awa

Name: Popularity of the name Awa in U.S. births, 1880–2026
Creator: U.S. Social Security Administration
License: https://www.ssa.gov/foia/
Keywords: Awa, baby name, popularity, U.S., SSA, rankings

Awa is an African feminine given name derived from EveAwa Marie Coll Seck Awa Dia, Senegalese-American Neo City Ambassador Awa Dioum-Ndiaye, Senegalese retired female track and field athlete Awa Fam, Spanish basketball player Awa Gueye, Senegalese women's basketball player Awa Santesson-Sey, Swedish singer

Western African

Current Rank

#4,985

Peak Rank

#3,404 (2005)

Total Babies

894

5-Yr Trend

-7%

1992

First Year

2026

Last Year

2005

Peak Year

#3404

Peak Rank

894

Total Count

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Awa

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

Western African

The Story of Awa

Awa first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1992, with 6 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2005: 44 births, good for #3,404 nationwide. About 35% of every Awa on record arrived during the 2000s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Awa ranks #4,985 for baby girls with 26 births, gradually falling (-7%). All told, over 894 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1990s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Variants & Related Forms of Awa

Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Awa. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Haoua

Names that sound like Awa

Phonetically similar names — useful when Awa is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Awwa
Awi
Aaia
Iwa
Uwa
Aiwa
Aaha
Ana
Allah
Aqua
Agua
Asha

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Awa

What does the name Awa mean?

What is the origin of the name Awa?

Awa has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Western African.

How popular is Awa in 2026?

In 2026, Awa ranks #4,985 among girls' names in the U.S., with 26 babies given the name that year.

When was Awa most popular?

Awa reached its peak popularity in 2005, ranking #3,404 that year with 44 babies given the name.

In which U.S. states is Awa most popular?

Awa has historically been most popular in New York, Maryland, Ohio. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Awa.

Is Awa a unisex name?

In U.S. Social Security records, Awa is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.

What names go well with Awa?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Awa include Ivone, Jamelle, Stephan. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

What are nicknames or variants of Awa?

Common variants and related forms of Awa include Haoua. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

About the name Awa

Awa is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1992 and has accumulated 894 births in the dataset. Awa's peak popularity came in 2005 when it ranked #3,404. Use the chart and map above to compare Awa's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.