UK girl's name
Sanna
A feminine Scandinavian name meaning "truth" or "true".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Sanna is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Sanna popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #3695, with 6 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2001, with 41 births.
This profile covers 381 England and Wales registrations across 27 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 15% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 399 living people in the UK are called Sanna. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Sanna ranked #3695 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 6 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2001, when 41 girls were registered as Sanna.
- • Sanna ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #749 in 2023.
- • About 399 living people in the UK are estimated to have Sanna as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#3695
2024
Births in 2024
6
Latest year
Peak year
2001
41 births
Estimated living
399
2026
Meaning
What does Sanna mean?
The name Sanna is believed to have originated in the Sanskrit language, which is an ancient Indo-Aryan language from the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "sanna," which means "pleasing," "lovely," or "attractive." This name has been in use since ancient times in various parts of South Asia.
In Indian mythology, Sanna is mentioned as the name of a minor goddess or celestial nymph. She is described as a beautiful and charming attendant of the Hindu god Indra, the king of the devas (gods) and the ruler of the heavens. The name Sanna is also associated with the Hindu goddess Parvati, who is considered the embodiment of beauty, love, and devotion.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Sanna can be found in the ancient Indian epic poem, the Mahabharata. In this epic, Sanna is mentioned as the name of a female character who was known for her beauty and grace.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Sanna. One such person was Sanna the Wise, a renowned scholar and philosopher who lived in the 6th century CE in the region of Khorezm, which is now part of modern-day Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. She was renowned for her knowledge of various subjects, including philosophy, astronomy, and mathematics.
Another prominent figure named Sanna was Sanna bint Bahram al-Suryani, a renowned Arab poet who lived in the 7th century CE. She was highly regarded for her eloquence and poetic skills, and her works were widely celebrated during her lifetime.
In the 12th century, there was a Persian princess named Sanna Khatun, who was the daughter of Sultan Sanjar, the ruler of the Seljuk Empire. She was known for her beauty, intelligence, and patronage of the arts and literature.
During the medieval period, Sanna was also the name of a renowned female artist and calligrapher from the Ottoman Empire. She was renowned for her intricate and beautiful calligraphic works, which adorned many buildings and manuscripts of the time.
In more recent history, Sanna was the name of Sanna Marin, a Finnish politician who became the Prime Minister of Finland in 2019 at the age of 34, making her the youngest-ever prime minister of the country.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Sanna over time
The chart below shows babies named Sanna registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Sanna, the clearest high point is 2001. The latest England and Wales figure is 6 births in 2024, compared with 41 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sanna by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Sanna was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #3798 | 25 | 4 |
| 2010s | #3676 | 63 | 9 |
| 2000s | #1611 | 179 | 10 |
| 1990s | #813 | 114 | 4 |
Geography
Where Sanna is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Sanna. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Sanna ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #749 in 2023.
Across the UK
Sanna in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#749 in 2023
6 years of NRS records, 21 total registered
Related
Names similar to Sanna
- Sophie 103,803
- Sophia 46,936
- Scarlett 34,261
- Sienna 32,418
- Sofia 29,136
- Sarah 27,961
- Shannon 25,510
- Summer 24,167
- Sara 14,205
- Skye 13,654
- Samantha 12,697
- Stephanie 9,309
FAQ
Sanna: questions and answers
How popular is the name Sanna in the UK right now?
In 2024, Sanna was ranked #3695 for girls in England and Wales, with 6 births registered.
When was Sanna most popular?
The peak year on record was 2001, with 41 babies registered as Sanna in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Sanna?
A feminine Scandinavian name meaning "truth" or "true".
How many people are called Sanna in the UK?
A total of 381 babies have been registered as Sanna across the 27 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 21 more in Scotland.
Where is Sanna most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Sanna ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #749 in 2023. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.