Laiyah
A name of Arabic origin meaning "nights".
Name Census estimates that about 723 living Americans carry the first name Laiyah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Laiyah today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Laiyah births was 2015 (112 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Laiyah. 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
723
~ 1 in 474,072 Americans
Peak year
2015
112 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,191
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Laiyah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Laiyah 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 577 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
Decades
Laiyah 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 Laiyah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Laiyahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 13 states and territories. Georgia, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Laiyah, while Mississippi, Maryland, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 23 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Laiyah
The name Laiyah is believed to have originated from the Arabic language, with its roots traced back to the Middle Eastern region. The earliest known use of this name dates back to the 7th century CE, during the rise of Islam and the spread of Arabic culture across the Middle East and parts of North Africa.
Laiyah is derived from the Arabic word "layla," which means "night" or "dark beauty." This connection to the night sky and its celestial bodies may have held significant symbolism in ancient Arabic traditions and beliefs. The name's spelling has evolved slightly over time, with variations such as Lailah and Leila being observed in historical records.
In Islamic literature, the name Laiyah is mentioned in some accounts as belonging to a prominent figure or companion of the Prophet Muhammad. However, the details surrounding this individual's life and role remain somewhat obscure in historical sources.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Laiyah can be found in the writings of Arab scholars and poets from the 8th and 9th centuries CE. During this period, the name was occasionally used in poetic works and literary texts, often as a symbolic representation of beauty and elegance.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Laiyah. One example is Laiyah al-Amiriya (1192-1262 CE), a celebrated Arabic poet and scholar who lived during the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt and Syria. Her works focused on themes of love, nature, and the human condition, and she was renowned for her mastery of the Arabic language.
Another historically significant figure was Laiyah bint Abi Hatim al-Tamimi (c. 790-850 CE), a renowned Islamic scholar and hadith narrator from Basra, modern-day Iraq. She was respected for her extensive knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence and her contributions to the preservation and transmission of prophetic traditions.
In the realm of Ottoman history, Laiyah Sultan (1642-1696 CE) was a prominent figure as the daughter of Sultan Ibrahim I and Valide Sultan (Queen Mother) of the Ottoman Empire during the reign of her son, Suleiman II.
Laiyah al-Nabulsi (1589-1661 CE) was a Syrian scholar and poet who lived during the Ottoman era. She gained recognition for her expertise in various fields, including Islamic theology, literature, and calligraphy, and her works were widely circulated and studied in her time.
Lastly, Laiyah al-Baghdadiyah (c. 1240-1300 CE) was an influential Islamic jurist and scholar from Baghdad, known for her contributions to the field of Islamic jurisprudence and her expertise in the Hanafi school of Islamic law.
People
Laiyah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Laiyah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Laiyah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Laiyah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 723 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Laiyah 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 474,072 US residents.
Is Laiyah a common name?
We classify Laiyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 728 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Laiyah most popular?
The single biggest year for Laiyah was 2015, when 112 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Laiyah is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Laiyah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Laiyah 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.