namelingSwipe names

Anita

Gender
Girl
Say it
a-NEE-ta
Origin
Hebrew
UK rank, 2025
#2,344 for girls
US rank, 2025
#1,341 for girls

Anita is a girls' name of Hebrew origin, meaning “favour, grace”. In 2025 it ranked 2,344th for girls in the UK (12 babies) and 1,341st for girls in the US (165 babies).

What does Anita mean?

Hebrew: Spanish pet form of Ana

“favour, grace”

A Spanish pet form of Ana, the Spanish form of Anna and Hannah.

More on Wiktionary.

Is Anita a girl's or a boy's name?

Anita is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 12 girls in the UK and 165 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.

How popular is Anita in the UK?

Rank in 2025
2,344th among girls
Babies in 2025
12 about 1 in 23,000 girls
Five-year trend
Falling down 43% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 12 girls in the UK were named Anita, making it the 2,344th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,389th. Its busiest year was 1996, with 75 girls.

2025 had the fewest girls named Anita since the records began in 1996.

Half of all the girls named Anita in the UK since 1996 were born between 2001 and 2013. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier girls aren't counted.

Among girls in 2025, it was 2,276th in England and Wales.

In the England and Wales top 100 for girls, which the ONS has published every ten years since 1904: 1944 (#78), 1954 (#95), 1964 (#87) and 1974 (#98).

1996Busiest: 75 in 19962025
Anita in the UK, year by year
YearGirlsRank
202512#2,344
202417#1,803
202313#2,185
202229#1,211
202122#1,491
202024#1,389
201927#1,285
201823#1,468
201730#1,213
201628#1,291
201534#1,108
201431#1,189
201331#1,188
201238#1,019
201153#764
201055#727
200949#797
200859#681
200755#688
200631#1,000
200556#633
200452#634
200348#658
200240#708
200144#649
200052#583
199950#598
199863#511
199753#560
199675#444

How popular is Anita in the US?

Rank in 2025
1,341st among girls
Babies in 2025
165 about 1 in 9,700 girls
Five-year trend
Steady down 6% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 165 girls in the US were named Anita, making it the 1,341st most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,533rd. Its busiest year was 1957, with 5,811 girls.

Half of all the girls named Anita in the US since 1880 were born between 1940 and 1965, the years shaded on the chart below.

In 2025, 175 girls in the US were given Anita or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,159, up from #1,341 for this spelling alone.

1880Busiest: 5,811 in 19572025
Anita in the US, year by year
YearGirlsRank
2025165#1,341
2024149#1,466
2023155#1,439
2022168#1,373
2021154#1,410
2020138#1,533
2019191#1,229
2018172#1,319
2017188#1,257
2016175#1,353
2015148#1,520
2014164#1,399
2013151#1,470
2012151#1,491
2011181#1,301
2010174#1,348
2009199#1,241
2008238#1,090
2007211#1,196
2006212#1,151
2005223#1,067
2004266#908
2003245#954
2002266#863
2001297#795
2000314#736
1999321#705
1998351#657
1997407#571
1996394#581
1995400#573
1994438#552
1993491#502
1992547#454
1991580#439
1990642#404
1989677#374
1988718#344
1987737#333
1986745#323
1985738#323
1984863#280
1983899#268
19821,010#248
19811,056#236
19801,151#223
19791,139#230
19781,221#209
19771,512#178
19761,508#167
19751,722#157
19741,936#144
19731,986#142
19722,230#136
19712,685#127
19702,895#127
19692,919#120
19683,047#109
19673,518#98
19663,872#88
19654,017#94
19644,909#85
19635,473#77
19625,521#81
19615,503#91
19605,637#87
19595,474#87
19585,774#82
19575,811#81
19565,505#83
19554,718#94
19544,408#96
19534,407#89
19524,134#91
19513,785#96
19503,572#99
19493,591#99
19483,615#102
19474,187#94
19464,027#84
19452,768#100
19442,825#95
19432,952#98
19422,998#93
19412,740#91
19402,828#87
19392,588#97
19382,636#99
19372,714#93
19362,304#104
19351,932#119
19341,784#130
19331,905#116
19322,098#116
19312,080#117
19302,183#115
19291,977#125
19281,725#137
19271,629#148
19261,617#150
19251,764#146
19241,853#142
19231,868#138
19221,761#141
19211,924#134
19201,934#131
19191,504#146
19181,482#151
19171,573#137
19161,339#151
19151,116#164
1914720#186
1913562#193
1912540#182
1911381#187
1910338#195
1909291#199
1908277#202
1907242#209
1906215#211
1905209#214
1904190#220
1903202#208
1902163#238
1901184#210
1900176#242
1899142#230
1898198#207
1897144#230
1896139#234
1895126#248
1894107#266
1893119#241
189282#299
189166#310
189068#301
188969#285
188859#311
188741#332
188640#338
188534#341
188436#326
188327#343
188220#407
188123#338
188016#421

Names like Anita

Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.

Anna, Elizabeth, Maria, Rebecca, Jessica, Sara, Joanna, Josephine, Eva, Mary, Angela, Martha

Names related to Anita

Aneta, Anwita, Anahit, Wanita

More Hebrew names

Noah, Isabella, Elijah, James, Jack, Mia, Ava, Jude, Ezra, Benjamin, Isaac, Jacob, Ethan, Daniel, Samuel, Elias

Every Hebrew name

Sources

Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.

To cite this page: Nameling, “Anita: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/anita, updated 20 October 2026.