Anita
Anita was the 1342nd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 165 babies. Its best year was 1963, when it ranked 77th; the most babies were born in 1957 (5,811). Over the last ten years it has moved up 179 places. More babies were named Anita in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Meaning pet form of Ana (Anne) · Spanish, Hebrew
Say it uh-NEE-tuh /əˈnitə/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,342 girls, up 192 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 165girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19575,811 babies
- Total since 1880
- 215,849babies recorded
What does the name Anita mean?
Anita is the Spanish diminutive of Ana (Anne), as Wiktionary notes, formed with -ita. Anne comes from Hebrew Ḥannah 'favor, grace', the mother of the prophet Samuel, and Saint Anne is the mother of the Virgin Mary. Anita became popular in the US in the early to mid-20th century. In India Anita is also used, often understood differently, but the Spanish source is the main one in the US.
Ana (Spanish, “Anne”)חַנָּה (Ḥannah) (Hebrew, “favor, grace”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Anne, Ana, Annette, Nita.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean grace.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Anita', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Anne', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Anita
The usual nicknames for Anita are Nita.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nita · also for Juanita | Traditional | #12,827 | 42 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Anitas go by each one.
Anita popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 684 since 1917.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,342 | 165 |
| 2020 | #1,534 | 138 |
| 2010 | #1,349 | 174 |
| 2000 | #736 | 314 |
| 1990 | #404 | 642 |
| 1980 | #223 | 1,151 |
| 1970 | #127 | 2,895 |
| 1960 | #87 | 5,637 |
| 1950 | #99 | 3,572 |
| 1940 | #87 | 2,828 |
| 1930 | #115 | 2,183 |
| 1920 | #131 | 1,934 |
| 1910 | #195 | 338 |
| 1900 | #242 | 176 |
| 1890 | #301 | 68 |
| 1880 | #423 | 16 |
How popular is Anita, counting every spelling?
Anita is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #1,216 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,342 for Anita on its own. Together these spellings went to 175 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anita | 165 | #1,342 | 791 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Anita?
165 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Anita (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Anita born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 51 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Anita.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Anita?
About 135,700 people born in the US named Anita are alive today, with a median age of 65; half are between 56 and 73. That makes Anita a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Anita by state
How common Anita was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Washington (1.6×). In 31 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Anita: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Anita, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Anita · Sibling names for Anita
Questions about the name Anita
What does Anita mean?
Anita means “pet form of Ana (Anne)” (Spanish, Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Anita?
Anita was the 1342nd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 165 babies. Its best year was 1963, when it ranked 77th; the most babies were born in 1957 (5,811). Over the last ten years it has moved up 179 places. More babies were named Anita in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Is Anita a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Anita in the US.
Where is Anita most popular?
In 2021–2025, Anita was most common in Washington (0.15 per 1,000 girls), followed by California and Iowa.