girl's name
Brandi
BRAN-dee
- Origin English
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 103,326
Brandi respells Brandy, and the drink behind it means burned wine — the Dutch brandewijn described wine heated to distill it. American births jumped from 795 in 1971 to 2,061 in 1972. It holds 102,337 lifetime births in our records.
- Brandi is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1981, when 5,551 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 118,413 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1949.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Brandi over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1940s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1940s | 5 |
| 1950s | 72 |
| 1960s | 1,465 |
| 1970s | 29,209 |
| 1980s | 43,090 |
| 1990s | 23,007 |
| 2000s | 4,065 |
| 2010s | 1,101 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 281 |
What Brandi means
Brandi means the spirit distilled from wine, and behind that burned wine. The Dutch compound joins a word for burning to one for wine, describing the process rather than the drink.
Where Brandi comes from
Brandi respells Brandy, clipped from brandywine, itself the Dutch brandewijn — branden, to burn, joined to wijn, wine. The burning is distillation: wine heated so the alcohol evaporates and is collected, then condensed. English shortened the compound in the seventeenth century. The -i ending belongs to the mid-century American fashion that also produced Randi, Jodi and Toni, and it splits the name's volume with Brandy and Brandie.
Brandi in use
Brandi rose sharply in 1972, from 795 American births the year before to 2,061 — a jump our data dates precisely without identifying a cause — and went on to peak at 5,551 in 1981. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 4804th in the United States on 28 births, across 103,326 lifetime births. Brandy, written up separately, holds a comparable volume.
How popular is Brandi?
In 2025, Brandi was given to 28 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Brandi is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Brandi
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Brandi also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Brandi over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Brandi in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Brandi
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Brandi — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Brandi
What does the name Brandi mean?
The drink — and the drink means burned wine, from the Dutch brandewijn.
Is it Brandi or Brandy?
Both, along with Brandie. Brandy follows the word; Brandi uses the mid-century American -i ending.
Why burned wine?
The burning is distillation — wine heated so the alcohol evaporates and is collected.
How popular is Brandi?
4804th in the United States, down from a 1981 peak of 5,551 births.
Is Brandi a girl's or a boy's name?
Brandi is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Brandi?
Brandi has 2 syllables.
Is Brandi a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Brandi currently ranks #4,804 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.