Ananias is of Hebrew origin and means "the Lord is gracious." It is derived from the Hebrew words "anan" meaning "answered," and "yah" which refers to God. The name Ananias is popular in biblical history, most notably as one of Saul's companions who was struck blind by God on his way to Damascus. Despite its biblical roots, Ananias has not been widely used outside of religious contexts and remains relatively rare today.
The name Ananias experienced significant fluctuations in popularity over the years, with a notable increase in recent times. Between 1883 and 1986, the number of annual births ranged from 5 to 13, with most years seeing fewer than 10 births. However, since 1987, there has been a marked rise, with the number of births per year ranging from 6 to 41, indicating growing popularity in recent decades. The total number of births recorded over this period is 852.