| Ali | Malik | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Exalted, noble | king |
| Origin | Arabic | arabic |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | AH-lee | MAH-lik |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1914 | 1949 |
| Peak year | 2022 (1,124) | 1996 (4,026) |
| In 2025 | 1,116 | 724 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Ali | Malik |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 6,347 | 4,755 |
| 2010s | 9,865 | 9,210 |
| 2000s | 7,735 | 14,766 |
| 1990s | 5,140 | 17,951 |
| 1980s | 2,846 | 1,427 |
| 1970s | 1,733 | 1,348 |
| 1960s | 408 | 139 |
| 1950s | 166 | 6 |
| 1940s | 65 | 5 |
| 1930s | 50 | 0 |
| 1920s | 23 | 0 |
| 1910s | 5 | 0 |
Ali means “exalted,” “noble” or “sublime” in Arabic.
Arabic 'malik' means 'king', from the Semitic root m-l-k ('to rule, to be king'). Al-Malik ('The King') is one of the names of God in Islam. Cognate with Hebrew 'melech'.
Ali is more popular than Malik today: about 1,116 US babies were given the name Ali in 2025, compared with 724 named Malik.
Ali means Exalted, noble (Arabic origin), while Malik means king (arabic origin).
In US records, Ali first appears in 1914 and Malik in 1949, so Ali has the longer recorded history.