African Names For Boys

African names for boys include some of the very biggest names on the global stage in recent years: Barack, Mandela, Kofi, and — for rather different reasons — Kanye. Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has a particularly interesting name in terms of traditional African naming conventions: Kofi means "born on a Friday", while his middle name, Atta, means "twin". It remains common practice in parts of Africa to name babies according to time, day, order, or circumstances of birth. Other appealing African boy names with such meanings include the Yoruba name Kehinde ("second of twins") and the Akan name Kwame ("born on a Saturday"). See our full selection of African baby boy names, and the stories behind them, below.

• Abanu

• Alimayu

• Amadi

• Ayan

• Ayu

• Barack

• Congo

• Djimon

• Ebo

• Gahiji

• Garian

• Genet

• Ibo

• Idi

• Kano

• Kanye

• Kato

• Kehinde

• Kenya

• Kenyatta

• Kofi

• Kwabena

• Kwadwo

• Kwaku

• Kwame

• Kymani

• Mandela

• Mandla

• Massai

• Nairobi

• Obama

• Obi

• Odion

• Odissan

• Ogun

• Pili

• Senegal

• Shango

• Taye

• Unika

• Yaw

• Zaire

• Zenebe

• Zuri