Explore the Family Name Alani

The meaning of Alani

Muslim (mainly Iraq; also Al-Ani): from the Arabic habitational name al-ʿĀnī for someone from ʿĀna, a town in western Iraq, on the Euphrates. Compare Ani 2.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Alani in the United States?

The popularity of the surname Alani has noticeably increased in the U.S. between 2000 and 2010, according to data from the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, Alani was the 64,572nd most common surname, but by 2010 it had risen to the 44,500th position - a change of 31.08%. The number of individuals with this surname also grew from 288 in 2000 to 483 in 2010, marking a significant increase of 67.71%. This surge in popularity is reflected in the rise of proportion per 100k from 0.11 in 2000 to 0.16 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#64,572	#44,500	31.08%
Count	288	483	67.71%
Proportion per 100k	0.11	0.16	45.45%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Alani

As for the ethnic identity associated with the surname Alani, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census shows noticeable shifts between 2000 and 2010. The largest proportion of Alani bearers identify as White, which increased from 62.85% in 2000 to 68.53% in 2010. Meanwhile, the percentage identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander decreased by almost half, from 21.18% to 11.39%. Those reporting two or more races saw a slight increase from 12.5% to 13.66%, while the Hispanic representation more than doubled, rising from 1.74% to 4.97%. However, there were no reported instances of the surname among those identifying as Black, American Indian, or Alaskan Native during these years.

	2000	2010	Change
White	62.85%	68.53%	9.04%
Two or More Races	12.5%	13.66%	9.28%
Asian/Pacific Islander	21.18%	11.39%	-46.22%
Hispanic	1.74%	4.97%	185.63%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%