| Amir | Malik | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Prince, commander | king |
| Origin | Arabic | arabic |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | ah-MEER | MAH-lik |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1954 | 1949 |
| Peak year | 2024 (3,640) | 1996 (4,026) |
| In 2025 | 3,297 | 724 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Amir | Malik |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 20,129 | 4,755 |
| 2010s | 20,481 | 9,210 |
| 2000s | 8,869 | 14,766 |
| 1990s | 3,615 | 17,951 |
| 1980s | 1,843 | 1,427 |
| 1970s | 655 | 1,348 |
| 1960s | 144 | 139 |
| 1950s | 11 | 6 |
| 1940s | 0 | 5 |
Amir is an Arabic name meaning “prince,” “ruler” or “commander.”
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'.
Amir is more popular than Malik today: about 3,297 US babies were given the name Amir in 2025, compared with 724 named Malik.
Amir means Prince, commander (Arabic origin), while Malik means king (arabic origin).
In US records, Amir first appears in 1954 and Malik in 1949, so Malik has the longer recorded history.