Sarai
2025 SSA
Below 5 births
About Sarai
Sharp but sweet, ancient but with a contemporary sound, Sarai has been rising steadily up the US charts since the 90s and now sits comfortably in the Top 1000. In the Old Testament, God changed Sarai's name to Sara, so this would make a clever and legitimate honor name for an ancestral Sarah.
Sarai for girls#425 US
Familiar in Mexico and Spain, and given to around 700 girls in the US in each recent year, Sarai is a rare choice elswehere. It is also pronounced slightly differently depending on where you are in the world, with sehr-EYE or suh-RYE used by English speakers and sar-ah-EE among those who speak Spanish.
There is also the pretty variation Sarahi to consider. Popular in Mexico, it makes the Spanish pronunciation sar-ah-EE more obvious.
Sarai for boys
Predominantly used as a feminine name, Sarai is usually considered a variation of Sarah. In the Bible, it was the original name of the wife of Abraham, before God changed it. Given to nearly 700 girls in the US in a recent year, it has appeared just one in the charts for boys, back in 1996 when it was chosen for six babies.
More internationally, Sarai has been used as a boy name in Cambodia, India, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Pakistan, perhaps as a variation of Siri, meaning "secret" in Swahili and "splendor, glory, radiance" in a variety of languages, ultimately from Sanskrit element śrī. There's also the Biblical Seraiah meaning "Yahweh is ruler" which could be another source.
Pronounced suh-RYE; SEHR-eye.
As of October 2026, Sarai ranked #425 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #398 in 2007.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #449 | 714 | 399.7 |
| 2015 | #439 | 722 | 404.5 |
| 2016 | #485 | 645 | 364 |
| 2017 | #440 | 720 | 417 |
| 2018 | #409 | 755 | 443.8 |
| 2019 | #437 | 728 | 433.8 |
| 2020 | #473 | 650 | 402.1 |
| 2021 | #458 | 685 | 417.5 |
| 2022 | #429 | 737 | 449.4 |
| 2023 | #407 | 749 | 466.8 |
| 2024 | #445 | 699 | 431.4 |
| 2025 | #425 | 733 | 456.1 |
World rankings
Sarai for girls
Similar names
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Sarai on lists
Famous Sarais
- Sarai Marie Howard aka Miss 86Girl
American rapper
- Sarai GivatyGirl
Israeli actress and model
- Sarai ShermanGirl
American painter
- Sarai Gascón MorenoGirl
Spanish Paralympic swimmer
- Sarai WalkerGirl
American novelist
Sarai in pop culture
- Saraiyu "Sarai" BalitangGirl
character from the "Daughter of the Lioness" series by Tamora Pierce
- SaraiGirl
character from "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
- Queen SaraiGirl
character from "The Dragon Prince" (by the creators of ATLA)