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Very Rare

Haliyah

A feminine Arabic given name meaning "ornament" or "embellishment".

Name Census estimates that about 143 living Americans carry the first name Haliyah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Haliyah today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Haliyah births was 2004 (12 babies).

This page is the full Name Census profile for Haliyah. 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

143

~ 1 in 2,396,883 Americans

Peak year

2004

12 babies that year

Average age

15

years old

2023 SSA rank

#16,033

Tracked since 1997

Popularity

Haliyah: popularity over time

The SSA tracks Haliyah 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 70 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.

Babies born per year

03691220002005201020152020

Decades

Haliyah 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 Haliyah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.

DecadeMaleFemaleTotal
1990s055
2000s05959
2010s07070
2020s01111

Origin

Meaning and history of Haliyah

The name Haliyah is of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "halal," which means "permissible" or "lawful" in Islamic teachings. The earliest recorded use of this name can be traced back to the 7th century, during the rise of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula.

Haliyah was a relatively uncommon name during the medieval period, but it gained popularity among Muslim communities in various parts of the Middle East and North Africa. One of the earliest known recorded instances of this name was Haliyah bint Abi Bakr, a distant relative of the Prophet Muhammad, who lived in the 7th century.

In the 12th century, Haliyah al-Dimashqi was a renowned scholar and poet from Damascus, known for her mastery of Arabic literature and her contributions to the literary circles of the time. She was highly regarded for her knowledge and her works, which have survived to this day.

During the 13th century, Haliyah al-Andalusi was a prominent mathematician and astronomer from Al-Andalus (modern-day Spain). She made significant contributions to the field of mathematics and was one of the few women scientists of her time.

In the 15th century, Haliyah al-Qahirah was a renowned calligrapher and artist from Cairo, Egypt. Her works were highly sought after, and she was renowned for her intricate calligraphic designs and her mastery of the Arabic script.

Another notable figure with the name Haliyah was Haliyah bint al-Husayn, a 16th-century princess from the Ottoman Empire. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her support for scholars and artists during her time.

While the name Haliyah has not been widely used in recent centuries, it has maintained its connection to its Arabic roots and the rich cultural heritage of the Islamic world. The name carries connotations of purity, legality, and righteousness, reflecting the values and principles of Islamic teachings.

People

Haliyah + last name combinations

How many people share a full name with Haliyah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.

Related

Other names starting with H

Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.

FAQ

Haliyah: questions and answers

How many people in the U.S. are named Haliyah?

Name Census puts the figure at roughly 143 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Haliyah 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 2,396,883 US residents.

Is Haliyah a common name?

We classify Haliyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 145 babies have been registered with this name.

When was Haliyah most popular?

The single biggest year for Haliyah was 2004, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Haliyah is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.

Is Haliyah a female name?

Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Haliyah 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.

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.

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There are 143 people

with the first name

Haliyah

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