Anan is both a given name and a surname.

Hebrew/Arabic

Anan (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

: עָנַן ''‘ānan'') is used as both a

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

name meaning "cloud, vapour" or descriptive "visible water vapour floating above the earth". The Arabic form is from

Classical Arabic Classical Arabic or Quranic Arabic () is the standardized literary form of Arabic used from the 7th century and throughout the Middle Ages, most notably in Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid literary texts such as poetry, e ...

, possibly adopted from the Hebrew. Notable people with the Hebrew name include: * Anan, one of the Israelites who sealed the covenant after the return from Babylon () *

Anan (amora) Rav Anan (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: ) was a Babylonian rabbi of the third century (second generation of amoraim). Biography He was a student of Samuel of Nehardea, and contemporary of Rav Huna and Mar Ukba II. The book ''Tanna Devei Eliyahu'' i ...

, Babylonian Jewish scholar *

Anan ben David Anan Ben David (, ) is widely considered to be a major founder of Karaite Judaism. His followers were called Ananites and, like modern Karaites, did not believe the Rabbinic Jewish Oral Torah, such as the Mishnah, to be authoritative. History F ...

, Karaite *

Saul ben Anan Saul ben Anan (Hebrew language, Hebrew: שאול בן ענן) was a Karaite Judaism, Karaite Jewish leader of the eighth century CE. He was the son and successor of Anan ben David. He is styled by the later Karaites ''Nasi (Hebrew title), nasi'' ( ...

, Karaite Jewish leader of the eighth century CE

Notable people with Arabic name

Notable people with the Arabic name include: *

Anan Anwar Anan Anwar (; born 15 September 1986, in Thailand) is a Thai singer, traceur, and actor. He is the fourth child of his Scottish mother and Thai Indonesian father. His older brother Joni Anwar was a member of the musical group Raptor. Anan gained ...

, Thai singer and actor *

Sami Hafez Anan Lieutenant General Sami Hafez Anan (, ; born 27 February 1948) is a retired Egyptian military officer. He was the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces from 2005 until August 2012 when his retirement was announced by President Mohamed ...

, Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces

Other notable people

Other notable people who are not related to the Hebrew-Arabic meaning of name but carries the name or surname: *

Chế A Nan Jaya Ananda or Chế A Nan was made the king of Champa after Che Nang fled. He won Champa's independence against Tran Minh Tong in 1326.Maspero, G., 2002, The Champa Kingdom, Bangkok: White Lotus Co., Ltd., Biography He was originally from Trần ...

, a

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

king from the region of

Champa Champa (Cham language, Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ, چمڤا; ; 占城 or 占婆) was a collection of independent Chams, Cham Polity, polities that extended across the coast of what is present-day Central Vietnam, central and southern Vietnam from ...

Junro Anan was a Japanese professional baseball player who played for the Hiroshima Carp from 1956 to 1967. From 1968 to 1970 he played for the Kintetsu Buffaloes The were a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team based in Osaka, Japan, which was in th ...

( 阿南準郎), Japanese baseball player *

Kenji Anan is a Japanese stage and film actor. He began work with the Tokyo Sunshine Boys in 1983, and since then has performed in a variety of roles mostly in television dramas. Filmography Film *''The Uchōten Hotel'' (2006) *'' The Magic Hour'' (2008) ...

( 阿南健治), Japanese actor * Pokklaw Anan, Thai footballer

Hindi

In Hindi, the name "Anan" means face. Rarely is a person named Anan in India. However when Anan is conjoined with some number, it denotes either a God or a demon. Examples: *Chaturanan ne with four faces-

Lord Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...

* Panchanana ne with five faces-

Lord Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva is known as ''The Destroyer' ...

* Dashanana ne with ten faces- Demon Ravana {{given name, type=both Japanese-language surnames