Savannah Name Meaning: Origin, Popularity & Nicknames

What Does Savannah Mean?

Savannah as we know it means “treeless plain” or a “tract of low-lying marshy ground” ⁽¹⁾. It’s also the name of a river and a city in Georgia. The name Savannah also applies to Native Americans that lived in the area.

What is the Origin of the Name Savannah?

You might have heard that the word Savannah comes from Spanish, and that’s technically true. The origin of Savannah goes back farther than just Spanish, though. The Spanish borrowed their word “sabana” from the Taino word “zabana” which means sheet.

The original uses of Savannah weren’t names. It’s not until the Shawnee migrated to Georgia in the 1680s that we see Savannah used as a name. The Shawnee had several different names including Shawano, Savano, Savana, and Savannah.

How Popular is the Name Savannah?

The name Savannah has been quite popular in the United States for a long time. According to the Social Security Administration, the name made it into the top 50 most popular baby names for girls in 2000 ⁽²⁾. It stayed there until 2019 when it dropped to 54th place.

It ranked 37th in 2000, 42nd in 2001, and 39th in 2002. The most popular it has been so far was in 2007 when it ranked 30th. In that year, the name represented 0.333 of all of the girls born.

At present, Savannah is still in the top 100 most popular baby names for girls and could very easily break back into the top 50. As for the rest of the world, Savannah ranked in the top 100 in Canada and Australia in 2006. It was also in the top 10 in Jamaica in 2017.

How Do I Pronounce Savannah?

There are a few different ways to pronounce Savannah. It has to do with which dialect of English you speak or if you even speak English. The word is common in Spanish, too. Let’s take a look.

• Suh-va-nuh
• Sa-va-nuh
• Sah-vah-nah
• Saa-van-ah
• Sav-ann-ahh
• Sa-ba-nah (Spanish)

Is Savannah a Boy or Girl Name?

Any name can be a name for a baby, whether that baby is a boy, girl, or nonbinary person. Historically though, girls are more commonly named Savannah. There have been boys named Savannah as well, but it’s not very popular.

Variations of Savannah

You’ll find that people have their own ideas about how to spell Savannah. There are versions of the name in other languages and cultures, as well. Let’s check it out.

• Sabian (Arabic)
• Sabeen (Arabic)
• Savanna (English)
• Savanah (English)
• Savian (French)
• Sivan (Hebrew)
• Sabaean (Hebrew)
• Savan (Indian)
• Sahvanna (Native American)
• Savana (Native American)
• Sabana (Spanish)

Nicknames for Savannah

The only limit to what you can call someone as a nickname is your imagination. Sometimes it makes perfect sense, sometimes it makes no sense at all. Did you know Peggy is short for Margaret? Mind-blowing.

Here are some common nicknames for Savannah:

• Anna
• Ann
• Ava
• Sannah
• Sav
• Sava
• Savvy
• Vann
• Vannah

Here are some silly nicknames:

• Savannah banana
• Savannahsaurus
• Cabana
• Bandana
• Nana
• Safari
• Georgia
• Treeless plain

Similar Names to Savannah

So you like the name Savannah, but you don’t want to use it. Maybe it’s too long or you already know a Savannah and it would be awkward?

Here are some names that are similar in sound:

• Brianna
• Hannah
• Havanah
• Madison
• Samantha
• Sarah
• Selena
• Sierra
• Sofia
• Sydney

Here are some names that are similar in popularity:

• Alexis
• Ashley
• Bailey
• Caroline
• Charlotte
• Dakota
• Mackenzie
• Peyton
• Riley
• Victoria

Middle Names for Savannah

There are lots of reasons to choose a middle name for your child. You could choose a family name, a celebrity name, a name with a special meaning, or just a name that sounds good.

Here are some middle name suggestions:

• Claire
• Elise
• Gayle
• Grace
• Harper
• Jane
• Lou
• Lynn
• Marie
• Rain
• Reese
• Rose
• Taylor

Sibling Names for Savannah

If you already know how many kids you want to have, you could match their names. We love to see a set of kids with themed names, rhyming names, or names that all start with the same letter. It’s like wearing matching outfits all of the time.

• Ally
• Austin
• Charlotte
• George
• Orlando
• Shelby
• Tyler
• Vince
• William

Famous People Named Savannah

Seeing as it has been around for hundreds of years, there are quite a few famous Savannahs.

• Savannah Outen: American singer.
• Savannah Miller: American designer.
• Savannah: American adult film actress.
• Savannah Clark Guthrie: American journalist.
• Savannah Janine “Savvy” Shields: Miss America 2017.
• Savannah King: Canadian Olympic swimmer.
• Savannah Rose LaBrant: American social media personality.
• Savannah Read: English actress.
• Savannah Jane Buffett: daughter of Jimmy Buffett.
• Savannah Anne Kathleen Phillips: daughter of Peter Phillips, and the eldest great-granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II.
• Savannah O’Keefe: daughter of Australian rules footballer Ryan O’Keefe.
• Savannah Elizabeth McCaskill: American soccer player.

Savannah in Popular Culture

You can find this beautiful name in songs, books, and movies. It’s also a fairly common name for cities in the U.S.

• Savannah Constance Levine: character in “Women of the Otherworld” by Kelley Armstrong.
• Savannah Curtis: character in Nicholas Sparks’ “Dear John.”
• Savannah “Savi” Davis: character on “Mistresses.”
• Savannah Driscoll: character in 1982 film “Savannah Smiles.”
• Savannah Fare You Well: a song by Jimmy Buffet.
• Savannah King: character in the film “Red.”
• Savannah Kinkirk: character on “Seventh Heaven.”
• Savannah Reed: character in SophieGTV’s LPS Popular.
• Savannah Sinclair: character in Heather Vogel Frederick’s “The Mother, Daughter Book Club.”
• Savannah Smiles: a Girl Scout cookie.
• Savannah Snow: character in the “Caster Chronicles” by Kami Garcia.
• Savannah: character in Terry McMillan’s “Waiting to Exhale.”
• Savannah: character in Pat Conroy’s “Prince of Tides.”
• Savannah (Don’t You Ever Think of Me): a song by Vince Gill.
• West Savannah: a song by Outkast.

Savannah FAQs

Here are some other questions you may have about this name.