Ari

Did you know?

A few things about Ari you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Ari

Ari Freyr Skúlason

Icelandic footballer

Choose Ari and your child shares a first name with Ari Freyr Skúlason, an Icelandic footballer. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Ari, like who?” Ari Freyr Skúlason's Wikipedia article is available in 36 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Ari Freyr Skúlason on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Please attribute as: "Wikipedia / Tobias Klenze" (user page link optional). Remember that you must also mention the lice, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 2,114 baby boys born in the US in 2025 was named Ari, 808 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Ari would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryAri first shows up in US birth records in 1958, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 67 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIts best year was 2022, when it reached #328.
• 📈Then vs nowAri is 4.5× more common today than it was in 2000. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 9,488 baby boys; in 2025, about 1 in 2,114.
• 📍Where it's lovedAri is most popular in Washington, D.C., where it ranks #97, followed by New York (#159) and Connecticut (#219). It's in the top 1,000 in 31 states.
• ⚖️Boy or girlAri is given to both boys and girls: 63% of the 1,284 babies named Ari in 2025 were boys. That makes it one of the names that truly works for either.
• 💬MeaningIn Hebrew, Ari means “lion”. Our records link it to English, French and Hebrew roots.

About the name Ari

Ari is a gender-neutral name of English, French and Hebrew origin meaning “lion”. It has 3 letters and 1 syllable, starting with A and ending in “-ari”. US birth records list Ari for boys from 1958 to 2025, in 68 of those 68 years. Its best year was 2022, when it ranked #328 among boy names. In 2025 it ranked #393, with 808 babies. Of the 1,284 US babies named Ari in 2025, 37% were girls and 63% were boys.

Origin:English namesFrench namesHebrew namesIcelandic names