Sami (name)

Sami, also Samy or Sammy, is a given name and surname of different origins and meanings, most prevalent in the Arab world and Scandinavia.

Arabic
Sami, Samy, Samee (Arabic: سامي samī), is an Arabic male given name meaning "elevated ( رَفْعَة raf‘ah)" or "sublime ( سُمُوّ sumū/ sumuw)", in fact stemmed from the verb samā ( سما ) which means "to transcend", where the verb forms the adjective Sami which means "to be high, elevated, eminent, prominent".

The female given name, Samiya or Samia (سامِيَة), is formed and stemmed from this name.

The name Sami is often confused with other Arabic male given names, Samee (Arabic for 'one who hears') or Samir, specifically amongst non-native Arabic speakers when used outside of English-speaking countries.

Finnish
Sami as a Finnish male name derived from the name Samuel, or an American name abbreviated from Samantha or Samuel.

Given name

 * Sami (poet) (1743–1850), Sindhi poet who wrote Shlokas in Beit form
 * Sami Aslam (born 1995), Pakistani cricketer
 * Sami al-Hinnawi (1898–1950), Syrian politician and military officer
 * Sami Al-Jaber (born 1972), Saudi Arabian retired footballer
 * Sami Allagui (born 1986), German-born Tunisian footballer
 * Sami as-Solh (1887–1968), five-time prime minister of Lebanon
 * Sami Bayraktar (born 1978), Turkish-Belgian futsal player
 * Sami Bouajila (born 1966), French actor
 * Sami Callihan (born 1987), American professional wrestler
 * Sami Güçlü (born 1950), Turkish politician
 * Sami Ibrahim Haddad (1890–1957), Palestinian-Lebanese physician and writer
 * Sami Hyypiä (born 1973), Finnish footballer
 * Sami Jauhojärvi (born 1981), Finnish cross-country skier
 * Samy Kamkar, American security researcher
 * Sami Kapanen (born 1973), Finnish ice hockey player
 * Sami Khedira (born 1987), German footballer
 * Sami Kehela (born 1934), Canadian contract bridge player
 * Sam Lake (real name Sami Järvi, born 1970), Finnish writer
 * Sami Mahlio (born 1972), Finnish footballer
 * Sami Mansei (fl. 720), Japanese Buddhist priest and poet
 * Sami Michael (1926–2024), Israeli author and president of The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
 * Sami Moubayed (born 1978), Syrian historian
 * Sami Levi (born 1981), Turkish singer
 * Sami Osmakac, convicted Kosovar-American terrorist
 * Sami Rähmönen (born 1987), Finnish footballer
 * Sami Ristilä (born 1974), Finnish footballer
 * Sami Scheetz (born 1996), American politician
 * Samantha "Sami" Shapiro (born 1993), American gymnast
 * Sami Sharaf (1929–2023), Egyptian military officer and politician
 * Sami Sirviö (born 1970), Swedish musician and lead guitarist of the rock band Kent
 * Sami Uotila (disambiguation), various Finnish people
 * Sami Yli-Sirniö (born 1972), Finnish guitarist for the thrash metal band Kreator
 * Sami Yusuf (born 1980), British musician
 * Sami Zayn (born 1984), ring name of Rami Sebei, Canadian professional wrestler of Syrian descent
 * Bekir Sami Kunduh (1867–1933), the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey
 * Sami Al Haq, Pashtun religious scholar, known as Father of Taliban
 * Sami Yousafzai, Afghan Journalist

Surname

 * Adnan Sami (born 1973), Indian musician and actor
 * C. M. Shafi Sami, Bangladeshi politician
 * Jagannath Sami, Fijian labor-leader, politician, and soccer player
 * Joël Sami (born 1984), French footballer
 * Leocísio Sami (born 1988), Bissau-Guinean footballer
 * Madeleine Sami (born 1980), New Zealand actress
 * Mohammad Sami (born 1981), Pakistani cricketer