Persian given names draw on Old and Middle Persian, Zoroastrian vocabulary, classical literature, and later Arabic and Islamic usage. Many are compounds built from transparent elements: mehr/mihr (sun, kindness), far (glory), bah/bih (good), arta/ord (truth, order), -dad (given), -yar (friend), -ban (keeper), and older feminine -dokht/dokhtar (daughter). Common feminine endings include -eh/-e and -â/-a (Parvaneh, Setareh, Parisa), while masculine forms often end in -sh, -r, -d, or -m (Kourosh, Ardeshir, Bahram). Names from the Shahnameh and Sasanian rulers remain frequent (Rostam, Ardeshir, Khosrow), alongside Arabic-Islamic names and compounds such as Mohammad Reza or Amirhossein.
Linguistically, Persian features sounds written in Latin script as kh, gh/q, and zh, so spellings vary in transliteration (Keyvan/Keivan; Ghazal/Qazal). Typical themes include virtues (Omid “hope,” Navid “good news”), nature and celestial terms (Setareh “star,” Keyvan “Saturn”), and deities or concepts from pre-Islamic Iran (Anahita, Mehrdad “given by Mithra”). Modern trends in Iran and the diaspora include renewed use of pre-Islamic and literary names, alongside stable popularity of Arabic religious names. There is no single pattern, and mixed Persian–Arabic formations are common.
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ava | Possibly 'life' (from Eve), or 'bird' (folk Latin), or 'voice/sound' (Persian) | Germanic, Hebrew, Latin, Persian | Girl | 143,258 #1 | |
| Aria | Melody/air; noble; (sometimes) lioness | Hebrew, Italian, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 71,692 #2 | |
| Ariana | From Greek Ariadne 'most holy' or Persian Ariana 'land of the Aryans'. | Greek, Persian | Girl | 31,985 #3 | |
| Lyla | 'Night' (from Arabic Layla); also 'play' or 'divine play' (from Sanskrit Līlā). | Arabic, English, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 26,582 #4 | |
| Jasmine | Fragrant flower (jasmine) | Persian | Girl | 25,007 #5 | |
| Arya | 'Noble' (primary Sanskrit/Old Iranian sense); sometimes associated with 'air' or 'melody' via Aria | Albanian, Iranian, Persian, Sanskrit | Unisex | 24,381 #6 | |
| Lila | Night (Arabic); "divine play" or "play" (Sanskrit) | Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 17,250 #7 | |
| Kash | Either linked to 'Cash' (money/surname) or from Arabic Kashif meaning 'discoverer'/'revealer'. | Arabic, Persian | Boy | 11,079 #8 | |
| Cyrus | Likely 'sun' or 'like the sun'; historically associated with kingship | Persian | Boy | 8,605 #9 | |
| Kira | Multiple: 'dark-haired' (Irish); 'lady/noble' (Greek/Russian); 'ray/beam of light' (Sanskrit); 'shining/sparkling' (Japanese). | Greek, Hindi, Indian, Irish, Japanese, Persian, Russian, Sanskrit | Girl | 7,641 #10 | |
| Ariah | Commonly linked to 'lion' or 'lioness' (Hebrew); also associated with 'air/melody' (Italian) or 'noble' (Sanskrit). | Italian, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 7,488 #11 | |
| Yasmine | Jasmine (the fragrant flower) | French, Persian, Turkish | Girl | 7,299 #12 | |
| Kian | Irish: 'ancient, enduring'; Persian: 'king, royalty, realm'. | Irish, Persian | Boy | 6,539 #13 | |
| Mina | Varies by origin: Persian 'azure/enamel', Sanskrit 'fish', Arabic 'harbor/port', or a diminutive of Wilhelmina meaning 'will/protection'. | Arabic, Germanic, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Sanskrit, Scandinavian | Girl | 5,771 #14 | |
| Darius | Possessor of goodness; "he who holds firm the good." | Persian | Boy | 4,818 #15 | |
| Roxane | Bright; 'little bright one' or 'dawn' | French, Persian | Girl | 4,709 #16 | |
| Jazmin | Jasmine (the fragrant flower) | Persian | Girl | 4,612 #17 | |
| Yara | Varies by origin - Arabic: commonly 'small butterfly' or 'beloved'; Tupi–Guarani (Iara): 'lady of the lake' (mermaid); Turkish/Persian: 'wound' (word meaning); Hebrew similar form Ya'ara relates to 'forest' or 'honeycomb'. | Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Turkish | Girl | 4,399 #18 | |
| Dario | He who holds firm to good; possessor/upholder of good (often associated with wealth or kingliness) | Persian, Spanish | Boy | 3,740 #19 | |
| Jazmine | Jasmine (the fragrant flowering plant) | Persian | Girl | 3,605 #20 | |
| Amiri | From Arabic 'Amir' meaning 'prince', 'commander' or 'leader'; 'Amiri' conveys 'of the prince' or 'princely'. | Arabic, Persian, Swahili | Boy | 3,559 #21 | |
| Samira | Arabic: 'companion in evening conversation' or 'entertaining companion'; Sanskrit: 'breeze' or 'wind'. | Arabic, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 3,231 #22 | |
| Kiana | Varies by origin - commonly "divine/heavenly" (Hawaiian/Diana), "dark-haired" (from Irish Ciara), or relating to "kingdom/realm" or "elements of life" (Persian). | Hawaiian, Irish, Persian | Girl | 3,187 #23 | |
| Dana | Hebrew: 'judge'/'arbiter' (from Dan); Persian: 'wise'; English/Slavic: feminine or short form of Daniel or related to 'Dane' (person from Denmark); Arabic: 'precious pearl'. | Arabic, English, Hebrew, Persian, Slavic | Unisex | 3,067 #24 | |
| Soraya | Pleiades | Arabic, Persian | Girl | 2,803 #25 | |
| Sana | Radiance, brilliance; also 'praise' (Arabic/Urdu); various meanings in Japanese depending on kanji; 'word' in Finnish. | Arabic, Finnish, Hindi, Japanese, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu | Girl | 2,736 #26 | |
| Arian | Varies by origin: 'silver' (Welsh); 'noble/Aryan' (Persian/Sanskrit); sometimes used as a form of Adrian. | Albanian, Persian, Sanskrit, Welsh | Boy | 2,704 #27 | |
| Farah | Joy; happiness; gladness | Arabic, Persian | Girl | 2,597 #28 | |
| Elyas | My God is Yahweh (the Lord is my God) | Hebrew, Persian | Boy | 2,554 #29 | |
| Roxanne | Derived from Old Persian Roshanak, meaning "bright", "dawn" or "little star" | Persian | Girl | 2,491 #30 | |
| Aida | In Arabic, 'returning' or 'visitor' (feminine of 'returning'); widely known from Verdi's opera set in Egypt. | Arabic, Italian, Persian, Spanish, Turkish | Girl | 2,478 #31 | |
| Kiaan | From Gaelic Cian 'ancient, enduring'; in Persian usage linked to 'king/royal'; used in India as a modern given name. | Indian, Irish, Persian | Boy | 2,346 #32 | |
| Vida | Life (from Latin 'vita'); in some Slavic contexts linked to 'vid' meaning 'to see'. | Latin, Persian, Portuguese, Slavic, Spanish | Girl | 1,865 #33 | |
| Zia | Light; radiance; splendor | Arabic, Persian | Unisex | 1,865 #34 | |
| Dara | Meaning varies by origin: Irish - 'oak' or 'fruitful/fertile'; Persian - 'possessor' or 'wealthy' (related to Darius); Khmer - 'star'. | Irish, Khmer, Persian | Unisex | 1,744 #35 | |
| Taj | Crown | Arabic, Persian | Unisex | 1,551 #36 | |
| Daria | Originally 'sea' (Persian daryā); also historically linked to the Darius root meaning 'possessor' or 'wealthy' | Persian | Girl | 1,450 #37 | |
| Tala | Varies by culture - 'star' (Tagalog), 'gold' (Persian), 'palm' or 'bright' (Arabic), 'wolf' (some Native American languages). | Arabic, Native American, Persian, Tagalog | Girl | 1,433 #38 | |
| Darien | Derived from Darius, generally interpreted as 'he who holds firm' or 'upholder of good/wealth'. | English, Persian | Unisex | 1,367 #39 | |
| Kiyan | Persian: 'king, royal, kingship'; Irish (from Cian): 'ancient, enduring' | Irish, Persian | Boy | 1,365 #40 | |
| Sanai | Possibly derived from Hebrew 'Sinai' (Mount Sinai) or from Persian/Arabic roots meaning 'praiseworthy', 'brilliant', or 'distinguished'. | Arabic, Hebrew, Persian | Unisex | 1,307 #41 | |
| Yasmina | Jasmine | Arabic, French, Persian, Spanish | Girl | 1,213 #42 | |
| Yazmin | Jasmine (the flower) | Persian | Girl | 1,213 #43 | |
| Arman | Hope, aspiration, desire, ideal; also 'dream' in some usages | Armenian, French, Germanic, Persian | Boy | 1,202 #44 | |
| Armaan | Hope; desire; wish; aspiration | Persian | Boy | 1,141 #45 | |
| Rumi | Japanese: meaning varies by kanji (commonly 'beauty', 'lapis', 'flow', etc.); Persian/Turkic/Arabic: 'from Rūm' (of Anatolia/Byzantine lands) | Arabic, Japanese, Persian | Girl | 1,141 #46 | |
| Jazmyn | Jasmine (the fragrant flower) | Persian | Girl | 1,118 #47 | |
| Kianna | Generally taken to mean 'ancient' or 'enduring' (from Gaelic Cian); also associated with 'divine' as a Hawaiian form of Diana and linked to Persian Kian meaning 'king' or 'realm'. | Hawaiian, Irish, Persian | Girl | 1,088 #48 | |
| Sama | Sky, heaven (Arabic); in Persian/Sufi 'listening' or spiritual concert; in Sanskrit/Hindi 'equal' or 'same'. | Arabic, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit | Girl | 1,075 #49 | |
| Karam | Generosity, benevolence; in South Asia sometimes used to mean 'deed' or 'fate' (related to Sanskrit 'karma'). | Arabic, Persian, Urdu | Boy | 1,053 #50 |
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Persian-origin name in our dataset.
