Unisex name · since 1980
Nao
95 babies named Nao in U.S. Social Security records since 1980, with the highest year being 1998. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #27,698 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 95
- born since 1980
- 2000s
- peak decade
Nao is not among the current top-ranked girls names; 95 have been recorded since 1980.
Nao has 95 recorded births among girls since 1980, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used girls names, busiest in the 2000s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1980 to 2021.
- #27,698 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- 95 born since 1980
- 2000s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nao ranks #27,698 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 95 born since 1980, peaking in the 2000s.
- #27,698 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 95
- born since 1980
- 2000s
- peak decade
Nao's 95 recorded births place it above 61.64% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Nao's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Nao's SSA record in two at 1998 and the more recent half accounts for 59% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 41%, a genuinely balanced usage pattern. Its calmest year was 1980, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1998 peak of 11, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Nao popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1980–2021
- Peak year (1998)
- 11
- Annual births at peak, across 42 years of records
Nao popularity over time - boys
23 total births recorded since 2001 (Nao as boys' name)
Nao by decade
2000s is the heaviest window (30 births, 32% of the file).
2000s was Nao's strongest decade.
30 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 32% of all-time use.
Nao births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1980s
1980s
21 births
- 1990s
1990s
29 births
- 2000s
2000s
30 births
- 2010s 10
2010s
10 births
- 2020s 5
2020s
5 births
What this shows Peak: 2000s at 30 births (32% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Nao? ▼
Where does Nao sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Nao most popular? ▼
Is Nao a unisex name? ▼
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What to do with Nao's data
- Nao's decade-level peak was the 2000s (30 total births); usage has since declined to 5 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Nao
Nearby Names Like Nao
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Nao
Compare Nao side by side: Nao vs Naomi Nao vs Naoma Nao vs Naomie
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Nao: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1998)
Similar record span (~41 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1980–2021 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Nao draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.