Fun Facts About the Name Sifa
- 94 babies named Sifa: U.S. records list 94 babies given the name Sifa from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Sifa Mean?
Sifa is a Swahili name meaning "praise" or "commendation." It comes from the Swahili noun sifa, which refers to praise, acclaim, or the good qualities attributed to a person. The Swahili word was borrowed from Arabic ṣifah (صفة), meaning "attribute, quality, or description"; in Swahili it took on the sense of praise spoken about someone. So the literal root is about qualities or attributes, while the customary name meaning is "praise."
Sifa is not the same as the Arabic name Shifa (شفاء, "healing"), which comes from a different root; the two are sometimes confused because of their similar transliteration.
Sifa Name History & Origins
Sifa is used as a personal name in Swahili-speaking East Africa, especially in Tanzania and Kenya, where Swahili serves as a widely spoken language and coastal Islamic culture has long shaped naming. The word entered Swahili through contact with Arabic-speaking traders and scholars along the East African coast, and it belongs to the large body of Arabic-derived vocabulary in the language. As a given name it draws on the everyday Swahili sense of the word - praise or good repute - rather than on a single historical figure or literary character.
How Popular is the Name Sifa?
Sifa 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 2025. Its best rank was #6,289 in 2025.
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 | #6,289 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 2024 | #11,968 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2023 | #8,898 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2022 | #11,118 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2021 | #12,044 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2020 | #11,989 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2018 | #11,305 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2017 | #15,661 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2016 | #18,497 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2012 | #11,146 | 10 | 0.0006% |
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 Sifa Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are spiritually intense and can sting or charm. Your name brings love and new starts into life and attracts money. In business, you are the creator and promoter of original ideas and usually enjoy considerable financial success. 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.
✦ Sifa's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Sifa's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.