| Malka | Liora | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | queen | my light |
| Origin | hebrew | hebrew |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | MAHL-kah | lee-OR-ah |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 0 | 1982 |
| Peak year | 2024 (264) | 2025 (295) |
| In 2025 | 0 | 295 |
| Trend | Rising | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Malka | Liora |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,379 | 749 |
| 2010s | 1,755 | 589 |
| 2000s | 1,299 | 237 |
| 1990s | 856 | 79 |
| 1980s | 570 | 29 |
| 1970s | 353 | 0 |
| 1960s | 164 | 0 |
| 1950s | 110 | 0 |
| 1940s | 14 | 0 |
Hebrew 'malkah' (מלכה) means 'queen', from the Semitic root m-l-k. The Aramaic form appears in the Book of Daniel. Common as a traditional Jewish/Yiddish name.
Modern Hebrew, the feminine of Lior: li 'for me / my' + or 'light,' hence 'my light' or 'light for me.' A coined given name rather than a biblical one, built transparently from everyday Hebrew words.
Liora is more popular than Malka today: about 295 US babies were given the name Liora in 2025, compared with 0 named Malka.
Malka means queen (hebrew origin), while Liora means my light (hebrew origin).
In US records, Malka first appears in 0 and Liora in 1982, so Malka has the longer recorded history.