Malaijah
A feminine name of uncertain origin, potentially a variant of Malijah.
Name Census estimates that about 115 living Americans carry the first name Malaijah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Malaijah today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Malaijah births was 2003 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Malaijah. 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
115
~ 1 in 2,980,473 Americans
Peak year
2003
12 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#14,552
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Malaijah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Malaijah 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 66 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
Malaijah 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 Malaijah 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 Malaijah
The name Malaijah is a relatively modern name that appears to have originated in the late 20th or early 21st century. It is likely a combination of the names Malachi and Isaiah, both of which have Hebrew origins and are found in the Bible. The name Malachi means "messenger of God" and is the name of one of the twelve minor prophets in the Old Testament. Isaiah, on the other hand, is a major prophet whose name means "Yahweh is salvation".
The exact etymology of Malaijah is unclear, but it seems to be a creative blend of these two biblical names, possibly intended to convey a sense of divine message and salvation. While the name itself does not appear in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its components have deep roots in Judeo-Christian tradition.
As a relatively new name, there are no recorded historical figures bearing the name Malaijah prior to the modern era. However, some notable individuals who have been given this name in recent times include Malaijah Watkins, an American track and field athlete who competed in the 2016 Rio Olympics, and Malaijah Clark, an American basketball player who played for the University of Miami.
Beyond these two individuals, it is difficult to find many other notable people with the name Malaijah, given its relatively recent emergence. However, as a unique and meaningful name with biblical undertones, it is likely to continue gaining popularity in the coming years, potentially leading to more notable figures bearing this name in the future.
People
Malaijah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Malaijah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Malaijah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Malaijah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 115 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Malaijah 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 2,980,473 US residents.
Is Malaijah a common name?
We classify Malaijah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 116 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Malaijah most popular?
The single biggest year for Malaijah was 2003, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Malaijah is about 15 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 Malaijah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Malaijah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Malaijah 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 Malaijah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Malaijah 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 Malaijah 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 the name Malaijah?
Find out how many Americans are named Malaijah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.