| Akari | Nami | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Light, brightness | Wave |
| Origin | Japanese | japanese |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | ah-KAH-ree | NAH-mee |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1990 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2023 (111) | 2025 (156) |
| In 2025 | 104 | 0 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Akari | Nami |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 513 | 710 |
| 2010s | 386 | 296 |
| 2000s | 176 | 104 |
| 1990s | 57 | 42 |
| 1980s | 0 | 20 |
Akari is commonly written with kanji meaning “light” or “brightness.”
From the Japanese word nami (波) meaning 'wave'. Depending on the kanji used it can also carry other senses, but the 'wave' reading is standard.
Akari is more popular than Nami today: about 104 US babies were given the name Akari in 2025, compared with 0 named Nami.
Akari means Light, brightness (Japanese origin), while Nami means Wave (japanese origin).
In US records, Akari first appears in 1990 and Nami in 0, so Nami has the longer recorded history.