Azai is a modern name of uncertain origin, usually explained as a short form of Hebrew names such as Azaiah or Azariah that contain the element az, "strong", together with the meaning "God is strong". It belongs to the wave of short, vowel-rich boys' names like Kai, Zayn and Ezra. Azai has risen from number 6707 in 2015, entered the US top 1000 in 2024 and reached number 809 in 2025.