Khaliah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "friend" or "companion".
Name Census estimates that about 1,248 living Americans carry the first name Khaliah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Khaliah today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Khaliah births was 2017 (44 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Khaliah. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 274,643 Americans
Peak year
2017
44 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,694
Tracked since 1976
Popularity
Khaliah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Khaliah from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 354 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Khaliah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Khaliah 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 Khaliah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Khaliahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. Florida, Illinois, New Jersey recorded the most babies named Khaliah, while Missouri, Pennsylvania, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Khaliah
The given name Khaliah is believed to have its origins in Arabic culture, derived from the word "khaliyah" which translates to "friend" or "companion." This name is thought to have been in use as early as the 7th century CE, during the rise of Islam in the Middle East.
In the context of Islamic history, the name Khaliah may have been inspired by the concept of companionship and solidarity among the early Muslim community. It was seen as a virtuous name, reflecting the values of friendship, loyalty, and support.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Khaliah can be found in the writings of the renowned Islamic scholar and historian, Al-Tabari, who lived in the 9th and 10th centuries CE. He mentioned a woman named Khaliah who was a companion of the Prophet Muhammad's wife, Aisha.
Throughout history, there have been several notable figures who bore the name Khaliah. One of the most prominent was Khaliah bint al-Azhar (born around 1190 CE), a renowned poet and scholar from Andalusia, Spain. She was celebrated for her contributions to Arabic literature and her mastery of various poetic forms.
Another notable Khaliah was Khaliah al-Nabulsi (1641-1731 CE), a Syrian scholar and mystic who wrote extensively on Sufism and Islamic spirituality. Her works were widely read and influential in the Middle East during her lifetime.
In the 19th century, Khaliah bint Saqr Al Qasimi (1835-1925) was a prominent figure in the United Arab Emirates. She was a respected leader and played a significant role in the political and social affairs of her time.
More recently, Khaliah Ali (born 1950) is the daughter of the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. She has been actively involved in various philanthropic and social initiatives, carrying on her father's legacy of activism and humanitarian work.
While the name Khaliah may have its roots in Arabic culture, it has transcended geographical boundaries and has been adopted by various communities around the world, each with their own interpretations and associations with the name.
People
Khaliah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Khaliah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Khaliah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Khaliah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,248 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Khaliah 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 274,643 US residents.
Is Khaliah a common name?
We classify Khaliah as "Rare". It ranks above 91.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,278 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Khaliah most popular?
The single biggest year for Khaliah was 2017, when 44 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Khaliah is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Khaliah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Khaliah 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.