Girl · #13,427 in 2026

Sabah

Sabah is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalimantan province to the south. The Federal Territory of Labuan is an island just off Sabah's west coast. Sabah shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the west and the Philippines to the north and east.

  • Arabic
  • Turkish
Current Rank
#13,427
Peak Rank
#4,583 (1996)
Total Babies
522
5-Yr Trend
-28%
1968
First Year
2024
Last Year
1996
Peak Year
#4583
Peak Rank
522
Total Count
47
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Sabah

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

Sabah is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalimantan province to the south. The Federal Territory of Labuan is an island just off Sabah's west coast. Sabah shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the west and the Philippines to the north and east.

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

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • Arabic
  • Turkish
Etymology
The origin of the name Sabah is uncertain, and many theories have arisen. One theory is that when it was part of the Bruneian Sultanate , it was referred to as Saba because of the presence a variety of banana called pisang saba (also known as pisang menurun ), which are grown widely on the coast of the region and popular in Brunei . The Bajau community referred to it as pisang jaba . Additionally, during the Majapahit era, when Brunei was a vassal state of Majapahit , the Old Javanese eulogy of Nagarakretagama described the area in what is now Sabah as Seludang . Although the Chinese since the
Origin & history
Main article: History of Sabah

The Story of Sabah

American parents first put Sabah on the record books as a baby girl name in 1968, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1996, when 22 Sabahs were born — ranking #4,583 that year. About 30% of every Sabah on record arrived during the 1990s, its defining decade. Sabah last appeared in the published SSA data in 2024, with 6 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 522 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1960s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

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Names that sound like Sabah

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

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Sabah

What does the name Sabah mean?
Sabah is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalimantan province to the south. The Federal Territory of Labuan is an island just off Sabah's west coast. Sabah shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the west and the Philippines to the north and east.
What is the origin of the name Sabah?
Sabah has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Arabic, Turkish.
How popular is Sabah in 2026?
In 2026, Sabah ranks #13,427 among girls' names in the U.S., with 6 babies given the name that year.
When was Sabah most popular?
Sabah reached its peak popularity in 1996, ranking #4,583 that year with 22 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Sabah most popular?
Sabah has historically been most popular in New York, California. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Sabah.
Is Sabah a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Sabah is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Sabah?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Sabah include Tereza, Yuka, Sareena. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

Similar Names

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Tereza
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Yuka
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Sareena
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Keiosha
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Judea
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Sabrinna
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Jalexis
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Yilda
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About the name Sabah

Sabah is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1968 and has accumulated 522 births in the dataset. Sabah's peak popularity came in 1996 when it ranked #4,583. Use the chart and map above to compare Sabah'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.