Aaleeyah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "lofty" or "elevated".
Name Census estimates that about 150 living Americans carry the first name Aaleeyah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Aaleeyah today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Aaleeyah births was 2013 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Aaleeyah. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
150
~ 1 in 2,285,029 Americans
Peak year
2013
13 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#15,246
Tracked since 1994
Popularity
Aaleeyah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Aaleeyah from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 76 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Aaleeyah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aaleeyah by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Aaleeyah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Aaleeyah
The name Aaleeyah is of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "Ali," which means "elevated" or "sublime." It is a variant spelling of the more common name Aaliyah, with an additional "e" added to the end.
In Arabic culture, the name Aaleeyah has a rich history and significance. It is often associated with nobility, grace, and high moral character. The name can be traced back to the early Islamic era, where it was given to individuals who embodied these virtues.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Aaleeyah can be found in Arabic poetry and literature from the 7th and 8th centuries. During this time, the name was used to describe individuals of exceptional beauty, intellect, and virtue.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Aaleeyah. One of the most renowned was Aaleeyah bint Ahmed al-Marrakushi (1018-1091), a celebrated scholar and poet from Marrakesh, Morocco. She was widely acclaimed for her contributions to literature and her mastery of Arabic language and poetry.
Another prominent figure was Aaleeyah al-Gharnati (1304-1384), a Sufi mystic and scholar from Granada, Spain. She was known for her profound spiritual teachings and her dedication to the study of Islamic mysticism.
In the 19th century, Aaleeyah bint Sultan Abdul-Majid I (1845-1924) was an Ottoman princess and philanthropist. She was renowned for her charitable works and her efforts to improve the lives of women and children in the Ottoman Empire.
Aaleeyah Ghulamali (1895-1965) was an Indian scholar and educator who made significant contributions to the field of Islamic studies. She was instrumental in establishing several educational institutions and promoting the study of Arabic language and literature.
More recently, Aaleeyah Guindi (1941-2021) was an American anthropologist and author. She was widely acclaimed for her research on the Arab-American experience and her efforts to promote cross-cultural understanding.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who bore the name Aaleeyah throughout history. The name has endured for centuries, transcending cultural and geographical boundaries, and remains a symbol of grace, nobility, and intellectual pursuit.
People
Aaleeyah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Aaleeyah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Aaleeyah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Aaleeyah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 150 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Aaleeyah going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 2,285,029 US residents.
Is Aaleeyah a common name?
We classify Aaleeyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 152 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Aaleeyah most popular?
The single biggest year for Aaleeyah was 2013, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Aaleeyah is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Aaleeyah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Aaleeyah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Aaleeyah in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Aaleeyah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Aaleeyah in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Aaleeyah can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Aaleeyah as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.