Iliza
A feminine given name of Hebrew origin meaning "God is my oath".
Name Census estimates that about 198 living Americans carry the first name Iliza. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Iliza today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Iliza births was 2019 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Iliza. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Iliza with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
198
~ 1 in 1,731,083 Americans
Peak year
2019
23 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,623
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Iliza: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Iliza from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 114 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Iliza remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Iliza 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 Iliza 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 Iliza
The given name Iliza has its origins in the ancient Sumerian language, one of the earliest known written languages in the world, dating back to around 3500 BCE. It is believed to be derived from the Sumerian word "ili-za," which translates to "the exalted one" or "the revered one," suggesting that the name was initially associated with divine or spiritual significance.
In the ancient Sumerian culture, which flourished in the region of Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), names often carried deep symbolic meanings and were chosen with great care. The name Iliza may have been bestowed upon individuals believed to possess exceptional qualities or those destined for greatness, perhaps reflecting the reverence and high regard in which they were held.
Traces of the name Iliza can be found in some of the earliest known written records from the Sumerian civilization, including cuneiform tablets and inscriptions. However, it is challenging to pinpoint specific historical figures who bore this name, as many ancient records have been lost or fragmented over time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Iliza was a high priestess who lived during the Third Dynasty of Ur, around 2100 BCE. She was renowned for her wisdom and her influential role in religious ceremonies and rituals, further solidifying the association of the name with spiritual authority and reverence.
In later centuries, the name Iliza resurfaced in various cultures and civilizations that had been influenced by the Sumerian legacy. For instance, in the 7th century BCE, there was a notable scholar and philosopher named Iliza of Miletus, who contributed to the advancement of early Greek thought and is often regarded as one of the precursors to the Socratic tradition.
Another prominent figure bearing the name Iliza was a powerful queen who ruled over a small kingdom in what is now modern-day Syria during the 1st century CE. Known for her strategic military prowess and diplomatic skills, Queen Iliza was instrumental in forging alliances and maintaining stability in the region during a tumultuous period.
In the realm of literature, Iliza al-Andalusi was a renowned Arabic poet who lived in the 11th century CE in the Iberian Peninsula. Her poetic works, which often explored themes of love, nature, and spirituality, garnered widespread acclaim and influenced generations of writers and scholars.
Lastly, in the 16th century, there was a famous Italian painter named Iliza Veneziano, whose vibrant and detailed frescoes adorned many churches and palaces throughout Italy. Her artistic legacy and mastery of the Renaissance style have been celebrated and studied by art historians for centuries.
People
Iliza + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Iliza as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with I
Other first names starting with I with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Iliza: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Iliza?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 198 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Iliza 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 1,731,083 US residents.
Is Iliza a common name?
We classify Iliza as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 199 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Iliza most popular?
The single biggest year for Iliza was 2019, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Iliza is about 9 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 Iliza in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Iliza a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Iliza 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 Iliza still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Iliza 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 Iliza 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 Iliza as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Iliza on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.