Oni

♀ Girl

How to Pronounce Oni

Pronounced OH-nee /ˈoʊ.ni/Medium

Meaning: Oni is a Yoruba given name from Nigeria, read in name lists as 'desired one' or as a child born in a notable or sacred place. It belongs to the rich Yoruba tradition of names that record the circumstance of a birth.Low

In 30 seconds: Oni is a Yoruba name read as 'desired one' or a child born in a special place. It stayed rare in the US, appearing off and on and touching a slim peak around the early twenty-twenties (said OH-nee).

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Origin LowYoruba

MeaningOni is a Yoruba given name from Nigeria, read in name lists as 'desired one' or as a child born in a notable or sacred place. It belongs to the rich Yoruba tradition of names that record the circumstance of a birth.

U.S. rank (2023)#14713 ↘ Falling

2023 U.S. births6 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)

Peak year2020

Total births (all-time)≈ 275

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Oni is a Yoruba name from Nigeria, glossed in name lists as 'desired one' or as marking a child born in a special or sacred setting. It sits within the wider Yoruba practice of circumstance-naming and reaches American records as a short, warm, two-beat name; the Japanese word that shares the spelling is unrelated to this given-name reading.

It surfaces thinly in American records across recent decades and reached a slim peak around the early twenty-twenties. A girl named Oni then is a young child today.

Did you know? In Yoruba culture Oni also appears as an element in the royal title of Ife, but as a personal name it carries the warm sense of a longed-for or specially placed child.

Overall data confidence 40%

References - Oni — Yoruba given name 'desired one'/born in a special place; Japanese homograph noted as unrelated.

Variations

OnnieOnieOniyah

Nicknames

OniNini

Famous Bearers

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Oni mean?

Oni is a Yoruba name read as 'desired one' or a child born in a special or sacred place.

How do you pronounce Oni?

It is said OH-nee /ˈoʊ.ni/, two syllables with the stress on the first.

Is Oni a boy or girl name?

Oni is used here as a girl's name.

How popular is Oni?

It has always been rare in the United States, given to only about twenty girls a year at its slim peak in the early twenty-twenties.