| Malia | Leilani | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Calm, gentle | Heavenly flower |
| Origin | Hawaiian | hawaiian |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | muh-LEE-uh | lay-LAH-nee |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1919 | 1917 |
| Peak year | 2009 (1,700) | 2022 (3,868) |
| In 2025 | 872 | 3,792 |
| Trend | Steady | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Malia | Leilani |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 6,533 | 20,964 |
| 2010s | 11,140 | 18,160 |
| 2000s | 8,205 | 9,261 |
| 1990s | 2,477 | 2,166 |
| 1980s | 1,442 | 1,654 |
| 1970s | 1,027 | 1,315 |
| 1960s | 449 | 1,011 |
| 1950s | 323 | 713 |
| 1940s | 5 | 810 |
| 1930s | 0 | 345 |
| 1920s | 0 | 56 |
| 1910s | 5 | 11 |
Malia is a Hawaiian form of Mary, also associated with “calm” waters.
From Hawaiian 'lei' (flower, garland, lei) + 'lani' (heaven, sky, royal), giving 'heavenly flower' or more literally 'heavenly garland'. The floral element is genuine.
Leilani is more popular than Malia today: about 3,792 US babies were given the name Leilani in 2025, compared with 872 named Malia.
Malia means Calm, gentle (Hawaiian origin), while Leilani means Heavenly flower (hawaiian origin).
In US records, Malia first appears in 1919 and Leilani in 1917, so Leilani has the longer recorded history.