Aaliyah
Aaliyah was the 101st most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 2,607 babies. Its best year was 2012, when it ranked 36th with 5,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 54 places. More babies were named Aaliyah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning high, exalted · Arabic
Say it ah-LEE-uh /ɑˈliə/
- Rank in 2025
- #101 girls, down 36 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 2,607girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20125,523 babies
- Total since 1880
- 110,077babies recorded
What does the name Aaliyah mean?
Aaliyah is an English spelling of the Arabic name Aaliya, the feminine form of an adjective meaning 'high, exalted, lofty'. Wiktionary's Arabic entries give that sense. The R&B singer Aaliyah (1979 to 2001) made the name widely known in the US. Hebrew aliyah, 'ascent' or 'going up', is a separate but similar-sounding word that Wikipedia also discusses under the name, and Wiktionary lists Aliyah as a girl's name from either source.
عَالِيَة (Arabic, “ʿāliya, high, exalted (feminine)”)עֲלִיָּה (Hebrew, “aliyah, ascent (separate word)”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Aliyah, Aliya, Aleah, Alia.
See also: Arabic names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Aaliyah', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wiktionary, entry 'عال', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Aaliyah (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Aaliyah popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 106 since 1994.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #101 | 2,607 |
| 2020 | #65 | 3,584 |
| 2010 | #56 | 4,673 |
| 2000 | #211 | 1,496 |
| 1990 | #6,867 | 12 |
| 1980 | #2,440 | 39 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Aaliyah, counting every spelling?
Aaliyah is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #106 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #101 for Aaliyah on its own. Together these spellings went to 3,000 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aaliyah | 2,607 | #101 | 15,082 |
| Aliya | 330 | #823 | 1,650 |
| Aaliya | 45 | #3,389 | 244 |
| Alliyah | 18 | #6,340 | 95 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Aaliyah?
2,607 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Aaliyah (0.72 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Aaliyah born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 3 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Aaliyah.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Aaliyah?
About 109,000 people born in the US named Aaliyah are alive today, with a median age of 14; half are between 9 and 21. That makes Aaliyah mostly worn by children and young adults.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Aaliyah by state
How common Aaliyah was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Mexico (3.3×), Nevada (2.5×), Hawaii (1.9×), Delaware (1.8×), Alaska (1.7×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Montana, Idaho, Wisconsin.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Aaliyah: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Aaliyah, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Aaliyah · Sibling names for Aaliyah
Questions about the name Aaliyah
What does Aaliyah mean?
Aaliyah means “high, exalted” (Arabic origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Aaliyah?
Aaliyah was the 101st most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 2,607 babies. Its best year was 2012, when it ranked 36th with 5,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 54 places. More babies were named Aaliyah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Aaliyah a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Aaliyah in the US.
Where is Aaliyah most popular?
In 2021–2025, Aaliyah was most common in New Mexico (6.09 per 1,000 girls), followed by Nevada and Hawaii.