Girl name · Japanese
Ai
Name meaning, origin and popularity
: love; indigo (depends on characters)Ai is a girl's name that comes from Japanese and means "love; indigo (depends on characters)". It is used in Japanese and Chinese.
- Meaning
- Love; indigo (depends on characters)
- Origin
- Japanese
- Gender
- Girl
- Letters
- 2
Meaning and origin of Ai
As a girl's name, Ai comes from Japanese and means "love; indigo (depends on characters)". It is used in Japanese and Chinese.
Its meaning puts Ai on our names that mean love list.
Meanings come from published name dictionaries, led by Behind the Name. How we research names
How to write Ai in Japanese
In hiragana, Ai is あい. In kanji it can be written several ways, and each choice gives the name its own meaning. These are spellings used for the name, with what each kanji means.
| Kanji | Reading | What the kanji mean |
|---|---|---|
| 愛 | あい | 愛 love, affection |
| 藍 | あい | 藍 indigo |
| 亜衣 | あい | 亜 next, second + 衣 garment, robe |
Kanji and readings from the JMnedict and KANJIDIC2 dictionaries (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), checked by our editors.
Ai on Nomezo lists
What our editors wrote about Ai on 3 lists.
“愛: love. Two letters, big meaning”
From Anime girl names, cute anime girl names
“Love; also 藍, indigo. Meaning depends on kanji.”
From Japanese girl names, japanese girl names meaning love, hope and kindness
“Love, written 愛; Japanese and Chinese”
From Names that mean love, girl names that mean love
How popular is Ai?
- Recent US rank
- Fewer than 5 babies in 2025
- Best rank
- #5,005 in 1991
- 19 babies that year
- Babies since 1974
- At least 392
- Years with under 5 are not listed
| 1880s | 0 per million |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 0 per million |
| 1900s | 0 per million |
| 1910s | 0 per million |
| 1920s | 0 per million |
| 1930s | 0 per million |
| 1940s | 0 per million |
| 1950s | 0 per million |
| 1960s | 0 per million |
| 1970s | 1 per million |
| 1980s | 5 per million |
| 1990s | 6 per million |
| 2000s | 6 per million |
| 2010s | 3 per million |
| 2020s | 2 per million |
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #14,401 | #14,200 | – | #9,753 | #12,189 | #9,580 | – | – | – | – |
Source: US Social Security Administration baby-name data, 1880 to 2025, as published in 2026. Each spelling is counted separately, a name given to fewer than 5 babies of one sex in a year is left out, and few people born before 1937 have records, which is why the chart shows babies per million rather than raw counts.
Names spelled like Ai
One or two letters apart, but from a different root: they look alike without sharing a meaning.
- AriA lion (Hebrew, unisex)
- AdiJewel, ornament (Hebrew, unisex)
- AkiSecond and hope, written 亜希 (Japanese, girl)
- AoiHollyhock; blue (depends on characters) (Japanese, unisex)
- AdaNoble (Germanic, girl)
- AnaFavor, grace (Hebrew, girl)
- AvaVariant of Eve, life; in Persian, voice (Hebrew, girl)
- AbirScent or fragrance (Arabic, girl)
- AikoBeloved child (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
Names with a similar meaning
- AmandaWorthy of love (Latin, girl)
- AmadeusLove of God (Latin, boy)
- AmorLove (Latin, unisex)
- ErosLove (Greek, boy)
- MinnaLove (Old German, girl)
- NayeliPossibly from Zapotec words meaning I love you or open (Zapotec, girl)
- AgapiLove, affection (Greek, girl)
- AgapiosLove (Greek, boy)
- AhavaLove (Hebrew, girl)
- AimiLove and beauty, written 愛美 (Japanese, girl)
Middle names for Ai
Picked from our middle-name lists with a different first letter and a longer length, so the full name flows.
- DahliaFlower named for botanist Anders Dahl (Swedish, girl)
- ElizaGod is my oath (Hebrew, girl)
- GraceGrace, divine favor (Latin, girl)
- HonorEsteem, dignity (Latin, girl)
- LouisaFamous warrior (Germanic, girl)
- MargueriteA pearl (Greek, girl)
- ReeseArdor, enthusiasm (Welsh, unisex)
- TheodoraGift of God (Greek, girl)
More girl names from Japanese
- AkaneDeep red, madder (Japanese, girl)
- AkariLamplight (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AkemiBright beauty (Japanese, girl)
- AkikoBright child; autumn child (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AkiraBright, clear (depends on characters) (Japanese, unisex)
- AmaneHeavenly sound (depends on characters) (Japanese, unisex)
- AnApricot (Japanese, girl)
- AsahiMorning sun, written 朝日 (Japanese, unisex)
- AsamiMorning beauty (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AsukaFlying bird (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
Ai: common questions
What does the name Ai mean?
Ai comes from Japanese and means "love; indigo (depends on characters)".
Is Ai a boy or girl name?
Ai is mainly a girl's name.
Where does the name Ai come from?
Ai comes from Japanese and means "love; indigo (depends on characters)". Today it is used in Japanese and Chinese.
How do you write Ai in Japanese?
Ai is written あい in hiragana. Kanji spellings include 愛 (love), 藍 (indigo) and 亜衣 (next + garment). The kanji parents choose decide what the name means.
What names are similar to Ai?
Names spelled like Ai include Ari, Adi, Aki, Aoi and Ada.
What middle names go with Ai?
Middle names that flow well with Ai include Dahlia, Eliza, Grace, Honor and Louisa. A different first letter and a contrasting length usually sound best.