Samir
Samir was the 643rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 434 babies. Its best year was 2023, when it ranked 586th with 488 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 95 places. More babies were named Samir in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning companion in evening talk (Arabic) · Arabic
Say it suh-MEER /səˈmɪr/
- Rank in 2025
- #643 boys, up 6 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 434boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2023488 babies
- Total since 1880
- 11,163babies recorded
What does the name Samir mean?
Samir is an Arabic boys' name. Wiktionary's Arabic entry gives samīr as an adjective for someone entertaining, or for a companion who chats through the night. Wiktionary also records the name in Serbo-Croatian and Azerbaijani use; its Azerbaijani entry derives Samir there from a different Arabic word, thāmir, which shows that similar-sounding names can have separate sources. Samira is the feminine form. In the US it has been used since the 1950s.
سَمِير (Arabic, “entertaining; companion in night conversation”)
How sure is this? Probable. Wiktionary only.
Related names: Sameer, Samira, Samer.
See also: Arabic names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'سمير' (Arabic section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Samir' (Serbo-Croatian section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Samir' (Azerbaijani section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Samir popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 69 since 2003.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #643 | 434 |
| 2020 | #649 | 413 |
| 2010 | #807 | 266 |
| 2000 | #834 | 193 |
| 1990 | #947 | 121 |
| 1980 | #973 | 86 |
| 1970 | #1,369 | 38 |
| 1960 | #4,512 | 5 |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Samir, counting every spelling?
Samir is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #609 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #643 for Samir on its own. Together these spellings went to 452 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samir | 434 | #643 | 2,285 |
| Samyr | 11 | #7,584 | 26 |
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 Samir?
434 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Samir (0.12 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Samir 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 19 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Samir.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Samir?
About 10,800 people born in the US named Samir are alive today, with a median age of 15; half are between 7 and 27. That makes Samir mostly worn by children and young adults.
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.
Samir by state
How common Samir was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in District of Columbia (8.2×), Georgia (2.1×), Maryland (2.1×), Virginia (2.0×), New York (2.0×). In 20 states fewer than five boys 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 Samir: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Samir, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Samir · Sibling names for Samir
Questions about the name Samir
What does Samir mean?
Samir means “companion in evening talk (Arabic)” (Arabic origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Samir?
Samir was the 643rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 434 babies. Its best year was 2023, when it ranked 586th with 488 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 95 places. More babies were named Samir in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Samir a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Samir in the US.
Where is Samir most popular?
In 2021–2025, Samir was most common in District of Columbia (2.17 per 1,000 boys), followed by Georgia and Maryland.