| Sana | Zaina | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Radiance, brilliance, splendor | Beauty, beautiful |
| Origin | arabic | arabic |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | sah-NAH | ZY-nuh |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1923 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2022 (180) | 2025 (170) |
| In 2025 | 151 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Sana | Zaina |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 860 | 850 |
| 2010s | 1,222 | 1,229 |
| 2000s | 1,186 | 741 |
| 1990s | 888 | 264 |
| 1980s | 478 | 39 |
| 1970s | 142 | 0 |
| 1960s | 43 | 0 |
| 1950s | 39 | 0 |
| 1940s | 5 | 0 |
| 1920s | 10 | 0 |
Sana (سناء, sana') derives from the root s-n-w/s-n-y and means 'radiance, brilliance, splendour'. It should be distinguished from the unrelated Arabic word sana ('year') and from Sana'a, the Yemeni capital.
Feminine form tied to Arabic زين (zayn) 'beauty, adornment', from the root z-y-n. Shares the same root as Zayn and the name Zaynab.
Sana is more popular than Zaina today: about 151 US babies were given the name Sana in 2025, compared with 0 named Zaina.
Sana means Radiance, brilliance, splendor (arabic origin), while Zaina means Beauty, beautiful (arabic origin).
In US records, Sana first appears in 1923 and Zaina in 0, so Zaina has the longer recorded history.