Fun Facts About the Name Wana
- 195 babies named Wana: U.S. records list 195 babies given the name Wana from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Wana Mean?
Wana is usually explained in one of two ways, and the two explanations come from unrelated words. In Hawaiian, wana is the everyday word for a sea urchin and for its spines, and it is also a verb meaning "to prick." In Indonesian, Javanese, and Malay, wana means "forest, woods" - a formal or poetic word taken from Sanskrit vana (वन), "forest, wood, grove." These are separate words in separate languages, so they are matched to the name rather than being stages in a single development, and the name's actual origin is uncertain: a family that chose Wana may have had either sense in mind, or neither.
Wana Name History & Origins
In Hawaiian, wana names the long-spined sea urchins of island reefs and also their spines and the pricking they cause. Hawaiian personal names are normally drawn from ordinary words and short phrases rather than from imported saints' names, so a Hawaiian bearer of the name would read it literally as "sea urchin."
The other strand is older. Sanskrit vana, "forest," traveled with Sanskrit vocabulary into Old Javanese and then into Indonesian and Malay, where wana still means "forest" beside the everyday word hutan. It survives in Indonesian place names such as Wanagiri in Bali, formed from wana and giri, "hill, mountain," and it is used in personal names as well. In English-speaking countries Wana is rare and has no long separate history, and the similar-looking Wanda, Ivana, and Hana are distinct names with their own backgrounds, not evidence about Wana.
How Popular is the Name Wana?
Wana 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 1927. Its best rank was #2,545 in 1927.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | #7,504 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1963 | #7,636 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1961 | #4,879 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #5,022 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1955 | #4,731 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1952 | #4,896 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1946 | #5,669 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1941 | #5,065 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1940 | #4,332 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1938 | #4,327 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1935 | #4,183 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1934 | #3,439 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1932 | #5,066 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1931 | #3,217 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1929 | #5,254 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1928 | #4,181 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1927 | #2,545 | 14 | 0.0012% |
| 1926 | #3,549 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1925 | #3,657 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1924 | #2,970 | 12 | 0.0010% |
| 1923 | #2,726 | 13 | 0.0011% |
| 1922 | #4,001 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1921 | #3,656 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1920 | #4,955 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1917 | #4,581 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1915 | #4,940 | 5 | 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 Wana Shapes Your Personality and Life?
To express itself, you must follow the divine law of love. You have great persistence and hate to give up. You are a good mixer, charming, magnetic and intuitive. The spirituality is the key to success. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Wana's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Wana's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.