Fun Facts About the Name Riza
- 96 babies named Riza: U.S. records list 96 babies given the name Riza from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Riza Mean?
Riza is a masculine given name meaning "contentment," "satisfaction," or "approval." It comes from Arabic riḍā (رضا), a noun built on the root ر-ض-و, whose verb raḍiya means "to be pleased with" or "to be satisfied with." In religious use the word refers especially to the good pleasure of God and to a person's acceptance of God's will, and that is the sense the name carries.
Riza is a form of that Arabic name rather than an independent one. The z reflects pronunciation outside Arabic - Persian Rezā, Ottoman Turkish Rıza, and the Balkan and Southeast Asian forms - while spellings with d, such as Rida, stay closer to the Arabic sound. The name Ridwan (Riḍwān) belongs to the same root.
Riza Name History & Origins
The noun riḍā appears in the Quran in the formula that God is pleased with the believers and they are pleased with Him, which occurs in several passages, among them 5:119 and 98:8. This idea of accepting God's will is the setting from which the personal name grew. In Shiite tradition the eighth Imam, ʿAlī ibn Mūsā al-Riḍā (died 818), is known by the same word; his shrine at Mashhad, Iran, became one of the most visited pilgrimage sites in the Islamic world, and the Persian form of the name, Rezā, is common in Iran.
The name spread with Islam and with the Ottoman Turkish form Rıza, from which it passed into the Muslim communities of the Balkans, where it appears as Riza in Bosnian, Albanian, and neighboring languages; it is also used in Indonesia and Malaysia. The spelling with z follows Persian, Turkish, and Balkan pronunciation, in which the Arabic ḍ of riḍā is pronounced as z, while Arabic-speaking communities generally write and say Rida.
In modern fiction, Riza is the given name of a character in the Japanese manga and anime series Fullmetal Alchemist; that is a separate fictional use and does not bear on the name's Arabic origin.
How Popular is the Name Riza?
Riza 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 2021. Its best rank was #8,089 in 1971.
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 | #14,575 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #13,179 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2022 | #17,265 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2021 | #10,163 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #10,916 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #12,507 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2016 | #18,316 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2015 | #12,773 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1994 | #15,203 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1993 | #15,236 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #11,092 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1981 | #11,712 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1979 | #11,476 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1978 | #11,033 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1971 | #8,089 | 6 | 0.0004% |
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 Riza Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are a law unto itself. Your tendency is to finish whatever you start. You are tolerant and like to help humanity. You are very active. You are generally warmhearted and gives freely of your time, energy, and sympathetic understanding. You have tolerance and acceptance of the frailties of others. Universal and humanitarian in outlook. This is very compassionate name. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Riza's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Riza's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.