| Diya | Asha | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Lamp, light | hope, wish |
| Origin | sanskrit | sanskrit |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | DEE-yuh | AH-shah |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1991 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2009 (309) | 2000 (250) |
| In 2025 | 119 | 0 |
| Trend | Declining | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Diya | Asha |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 789 | 973 |
| 2010s | 2,313 | 1,947 |
| 2000s | 1,916 | 2,120 |
| 1990s | 61 | 2,162 |
| 1980s | 0 | 1,229 |
| 1970s | 0 | 566 |
| 1960s | 0 | 72 |
From the Hindi दीया (diyā), 'an oil lamp', descended from the Sanskrit dīpa ('lamp, light'). A genuine, everyday Hindi word evoking the lamps of Diwali.
From Sanskrit 'asha' (आशा) meaning 'hope, wish, desire'. Flag: an identically spelled but etymologically DIFFERENT Avestan word 'asha' means 'truth/cosmic order' (Zoroastrianism), and the Swahili name Asha derives from Arabic for 'life' - these are separate roots that share a spelling.
Diya is more popular than Asha today: about 119 US babies were given the name Diya in 2025, compared with 0 named Asha.
Diya means Lamp, light (sanskrit origin), while Asha means hope, wish (sanskrit origin).
In US records, Diya first appears in 1991 and Asha in 0, so Asha has the longer recorded history.