Fun Facts About the Name Suhail
- 409 babies named Suhail: U.S. records list 409 babies given the name Suhail from 1880 through 2025. Even 25 girls received the name Suhail - about 1 girl for every 15 boys.
What Does the Name Suhail Mean?
Suhail is an Arabic masculine name. Its established meaning is the star Canopus, the brightest star in the southern constellation Carina. In Arabic the star is called Suhail (سهيل). The word is traditionally explained as a diminutive form of sahl, meaning 'level,' 'smooth,' or 'easy,' so a literal gloss is 'little level one' or 'little smooth one.' That derivation accounts for the word's shape, but the name's ordinary sense is the star itself. The Western name Canopus comes from Greek and is not the source of Suhail.
Suhail Name History & Origins
The name comes from Arabic star lore. In pre-Islamic Arabia, Canopus was known as Suhail and was used as a southern marker for navigation and seasonal timekeeping. Its appearance was associated with the direction of Yemen and with the desert night sky, and it appears in Arabic poetry as a familiar point of reference. This astral name then entered personal use in Arabic-speaking societies.
Suhail is attested in early Islamic history as the name of Suhayl ibn Amr, a leader of the Quraysh and a negotiator at the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah in 628. The name continued in Arabic and spread with Muslim cultures into Persian, Turkish, and South Asian settings, where it appears in forms such as Soheil, Süheyl, and Suhail. The English spelling Suhail is one of several transliterations of the Arabic Suhayl; the different forms reflect the sound and spelling patterns of the languages that adopted the name.
How Popular is the Name Suhail?
Suhail 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 2024. Its best rank was #4,671 in 2024.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | #8,960 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1979 | #8,896 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1978 | #11,245 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1976 | #9,099 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,164 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #4,671 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2023 | #7,240 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2022 | #6,430 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2021 | #9,576 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2020 | #8,631 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2019 | #7,114 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2018 | #11,948 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2017 | #6,032 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #5,103 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2015 | #6,629 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2014 | #7,486 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2013 | #8,675 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2012 | #10,610 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2011 | #8,670 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2010 | #5,443 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 2009 | #6,385 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2008 | #7,633 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 2007 | #8,082 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2006 | #8,631 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 2005 | #13,096 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #8,807 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2003 | #9,464 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2002 | #8,339 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2001 | #8,210 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #8,106 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1999 | #7,778 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1998 | #5,788 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #9,111 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #6,422 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1995 | #10,128 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #8,669 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1993 | #5,308 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1992 | #7,298 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1991 | #8,110 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #7,993 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #8,352 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #6,627 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #6,432 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #7,173 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1975 | #5,376 | 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 Suhail 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. Emergencies may raise your intuitive abilities in order to resolve conflict or situation. You become very creative under the pressure, and have quite original ideas to make the best out of it.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Suhail's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Suhail's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.