| Aaliyah | Layla | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | High, exalted, sublime | night |
| Origin | arabic | arabic |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | ah-LEE-ah | LAY-lah |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1976 | 1950 |
| Peak year | 2012 (5,523) | 2019 (6,523) |
| In 2025 | 2,607 | 5,338 |
| Trend | Declining | Steady |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Aaliyah | Layla |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 18,666 | 35,046 |
| 2010s | 46,734 | 63,242 |
| 2000s | 36,381 | 26,209 |
| 1990s | 7,839 | 2,189 |
| 1980s | 209 | 1,052 |
| 1970s | 142 | 1,355 |
| 1960s | 0 | 24 |
| 1950s | 0 | 19 |
Aaliyah ('aliya, عالية) is the feminine of 'Ali ('high, exalted'), from the Arabic root '-l-w, meaning 'high, lofty, sublime'. It appears in many transliterations including Alia, Aliyah, Aliya and Aaliyah.
From Arabic 'layl' meaning 'night'. Famous from the classical Arabic/Persian love story of Layla and Majnun.
Layla is more popular than Aaliyah today: about 5,338 US babies were given the name Layla in 2025, compared with 2,607 named Aaliyah.
Aaliyah means High, exalted, sublime (arabic origin), while Layla means night (arabic origin).
In US records, Aaliyah first appears in 1976 and Layla in 1950, so Layla has the longer recorded history.