Meaning & Origin
A female given name from Spanish.
Anita is a girl's and boy's baby name of Spanish origin, a Spanish diminutive of Ana (Ann) — from the Hebrew Channah meaning "grace" or "favor." Anita spread from Spain and Latin America into the broader English-speaking world, particularly in the mid-20th century.
Anita ranked in the U.S. top 30 girls' names in the 1940s and 1950s. Anita Baker's silky R&B voice and Anita Hill's historic Senate testimony gave the name two very different but equally powerful contemporary associations. West Side Story's fiery Anita remains one of musical theater's great characters.