Lianah
A feminine Arabic name meaning "soft and tender".
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the first name Lianah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lianah today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lianah births was 2013 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lianah. 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 Lianah with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
139
~ 1 in 2,465,859 Americans
Peak year
2013
12 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,676
Tracked since 2005
Popularity
Lianah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lianah 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 77 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Lianah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lianah 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 Lianah 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 Lianah
The name Lianah is thought to have originated from the Arabic language, where it is derived from the word "liana" meaning "tender" or "soft." This name is believed to have first emerged during the medieval period in the Middle East and North Africa regions.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Lianah can be found in a 12th-century Arabic manuscript, where it was mentioned as the name of a female character in a poetic tale. The name was likely chosen for its association with gentleness and femininity.
In the 13th century, there are records of a woman named Lianah who was a renowned calligrapher and artist in the court of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt. Her intricate work adorned many palaces and manuscripts of the time.
During the 15th century, the name Lianah gained popularity among the Moors in parts of modern-day Spain and Portugal. A notable figure was Lianah al-Andalusiyya, a poet and scholar who lived in Granada and whose works reflected the rich cultural exchange between the Muslim and Christian communities of the era.
In the 16th century, a Lianah was recorded as a skilled weaver in the Persian city of Isfahan, known for her exquisite tapestries and rugs that were sought after by the nobility.
Lianah al-Baghdadi, born in 1820, was a pioneering educator and advocate for women's education in the Ottoman Empire. She established one of the first schools for girls in Baghdad and worked tirelessly to promote literacy and empowerment for women in the region.
These are just a few examples of the historical figures who have carried the name Lianah over the centuries, reflecting its enduring presence and significance across various cultures and time periods.
People
Lianah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lianah 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
Lianah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lianah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 139 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lianah 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 2,465,859 US residents.
Is Lianah a common name?
We classify Lianah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 140 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lianah most popular?
The single biggest year for Lianah was 2013, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lianah is about 11 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 Lianah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lianah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lianah 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 Lianah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lianah 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 Lianah 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 common is the name Lianah?
See how many Americans are named Lianah on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.