Fun Facts About the Name Nissa
- More than 1 thousand babies named Nissa: U.S. records list 1,532 babies given the name Nissa from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Nissa Mean?
Nissa is a feminine given name with no single settled meaning, because more than one name and word lie behind its spelling. It is most often treated as a variant spelling of Nyssa, a name taken from the Greek place name Νύσσα (Nyssa), a town in Cappadocia in Asia Minor. The origin and meaning of that place name are uncertain.
Nissa is also used as a Hebrew name, connected with the word nes (נֵס), meaning "miracle" or "banner," and with the masculine name Nissim (נִסִּים), "miracles." On this explanation the name is understood to mean "miracle" or "sign." That is a customary interpretation rather than a firmly documented etymology, and it belongs to a different tradition from the Greek Nyssa.
Names that merely sound similar should not be assumed to share an origin with Nissa. Nisha, a Sanskrit name meaning "night," and the Arabic word nisāʾ ("women") resemble it in English spelling or sound, but neither is demonstrated to be its source.
Nissa Name History & Origins
The Greek place name Nyssa belonged to a town in Cappadocia, in what is now central Turkey. It is best known through Gregory of Nyssa, a fourth-century Christian bishop and theologian and one of the Cappadocian Fathers. Because his writings were widely read in the Greek-speaking and later Latin-speaking church, the name Nyssa remained visible in Christian Europe, and Nissa appears as an alternative spelling of it.
In Jewish usage, Nissa belongs to a separate tradition, as a feminine name formed in relation to the Hebrew nes and the masculine Nissim. The Hebrew name and the Greek name can be spelled identically in English even though they come from unrelated languages.
In recent English-language use, Nissa is also familiar as the name of Nissa Revane, a character in the trading card game Magic: The Gathering. That is a modern literary association and does not account for the name's earlier history.
How Popular is the Name Nissa?
Nissa has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1974. Its best rank was #1,466 in 1974.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #16,610 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2024 | #10,826 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2023 | #11,893 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2022 | #9,491 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2021 | #13,122 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2020 | #16,850 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #15,089 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2018 | #9,637 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #8,171 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #7,886 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2015 | #9,971 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2014 | #8,833 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2013 | #10,803 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2012 | #8,107 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2011 | #13,054 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2010 | #7,797 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2009 | #14,807 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2008 | #5,903 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2007 | #7,021 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2006 | #6,292 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 2005 | #7,067 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 2004 | #5,507 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2003 | #4,906 | 26 | 0.0014% |
| 2002 | #4,249 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 2001 | #5,326 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 2000 | #6,151 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1999 | #6,409 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1998 | #4,902 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 1997 | #4,961 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 1996 | #4,838 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 1995 | #4,069 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 1994 | #3,420 | 33 | 0.0018% |
| 1993 | #3,852 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 1992 | #2,960 | 40 | 0.0022% |
| 1991 | #2,726 | 44 | 0.0023% |
| 1990 | #3,878 | 27 | 0.0014% |
| 1989 | #3,980 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1988 | #3,984 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 1987 | #3,234 | 29 | 0.0017% |
| 1986 | #2,709 | 36 | 0.0021% |
| 1985 | #2,468 | 40 | 0.0023% |
| 1984 | #3,491 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 1983 | #3,774 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 1982 | #2,934 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 1981 | #2,049 | 51 | 0.0031% |
| 1980 | #2,844 | 32 | 0.0019% |
| 1979 | #1,991 | 52 | 0.0032% |
| 1978 | #1,798 | 57 | 0.0037% |
| 1977 | #1,795 | 57 | 0.0037% |
| 1976 | #1,901 | 48 | 0.0033% |
| 1975 | #1,976 | 45 | 0.0031% |
| 1974 | #1,466 | 68 | 0.0046% |
| 1973 | #1,639 | 56 | 0.0038% |
| 1972 | #1,745 | 51 | 0.0034% |
| 1971 | #1,706 | 54 | 0.0032% |
| 1970 | #2,105 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 1969 | #2,124 | 36 | 0.0021% |
| 1968 | #5,496 | 8 | 0.0005% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Nissa Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have a vivid imagination who can bring inspired messages to the world. You like to enjoy the pleasures of life, and when self is overcome, you can rise to the heights. You have an ability to avoid trouble - that is why you often fails to learn from experiences. You are restless, sociable people-oriented, a lover of change, and a seeker of adventure and new thrills. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Nissa's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Nissa's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.