Hannah
HAN-uh /ˈhæn.ə/
Meaning of Hannah
Hannah comes from the Hebrew חַנָּה (Ḥannah), meaning 'grace' or 'favour.' In the Hebrew Bible, Hannah is the mother of Samuel; her prayer in 1 Samuel 1 is one of the first individual petitions recorded in scripture. The name gave rise to the Greek Anna and French Anne, making Hannah the full Old Testament form of a name-cluster used for two millennia.
How to pronounce Hannah
A palindrome — spelled identically forwards and backwards. The h is silent at the end in most accents.
Current popularity of Hannah
Rankings from the most recent fully-published year in each national registry. Source links at the foot of the page.
| Registry | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| United States (SSA) | 2024 | #30 |
| Germany (GfdS) | 2024 | #9 |
Notable bearers of Hannah
Hannah (Hebrew Bible); Hannah Arendt (philosopher); Hannah Gadsby (comedian).
Similar names & variants
Cognates, spelling variants and close relatives. Click any name with an underline to read its own page.
Sibling-name suggestions
Names that pair stylistically with Hannah — useful as middle names or for siblings.
About this entry
Compiled by the Baby Name Finder editorial team following the rules in our Methodology and Editorial guidelines. If you spot an error, please tell us; our corrections policy is at /editorial-guidelines#corrections.
Sources
Last reviewed: 2026-05-31