Sonali
Sonali is a popular Indian female given name.
Meaning & Origin of Sonali
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Sonali is a popular Indian female given name.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Sonali
Sonali first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1970, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2000, when 60 Sonalis were born — ranking #2,508 that year. As of 2026, Sonali ranks #6,699 for baby girls with 17 births, falling sharply (-16%). In total, more than 1K Sonalis have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1970s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Notable people named Sonali
A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.
- Sonali Bendre (born 1975), Indian actress
- Shonali Bose (born 1965), Indian filmmaker
- Sonali Bhattacharyya (born 1978), British playwright
- Shonali Bhowmik (born 20th century), Indian-American musician
- Sonali Chakravarti Banerjee , Indian academician
- Sonali Chowdhury , Indian actress
- Sonali De Rycker , British-Indian venture capitalist
- Sonali Deraniyagala , Sri Lankan memoirist and economist
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Names that sound like Sonali
Phonetically similar names — useful when Sonali is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Somali
- Sunnily
- Cinelli
- Soundly
- Simile
- Saintly
- Sanely
- Simili
- Sonically
- Smalley
- Semele
- Soonly
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Sonali
What does the name Sonali mean?
How popular is Sonali in 2026?
When was Sonali most popular?
In which U.S. states is Sonali most popular?
Is Sonali a unisex name?
What names go well with Sonali?
About the name Sonali
Sonali is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1970 and has accumulated 1K births in the dataset. Sonali's peak popularity came in 2000 when it ranked #2,508. Use the chart and map above to compare Sonali's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2000 →
- Names of the 2000s →
- Names starting with "S" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
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.