Aliyah
Aliyah was the 263rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,188 babies. Its best year was 2011, when it ranked 133rd with 2,301 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 99 places. More babies were named Aliyah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning Origin uncertain · Arabic, Hebrew
Say it uh-LEE-uh /əˈliə/
- Rank in 2025
- #263 girls, down 75 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,188girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20112,301 babies
- Total since 1880
- 49,054babies recorded
What does the name Aliyah mean?
Aliyah has two sources that share a spelling. Wiktionary records an Arabic girl's name, a modern American variant of Aaliyah, from Arabic aaliya, 'high, exalted', and a separate Hebrew name from aliyah, 'ascent, going up'. Wikipedia explains that the Hebrew word is also used for being called up to read the Torah and for Jewish immigration to Israel. Both meanings point to rising, but they come from different languages.
عَالِيَة (Arabic, “ʿāliya, high, exalted”)עֲלִיָּה (Hebrew, “aliyah, ascent”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. Arabic 'high, exalted' and Hebrew 'ascent' are separate but similar sources.
Related names: Aaliyah, Aliya, Aleah, Alia.
See also: Arabic names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Aliyah', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Aliyah (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Aliyah
The usual nicknames for Aliyah are Liyah. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Aliyah in the last five years, 4 were named Liyah, against 6 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liyah | Modern | #3,874 | 253 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Aliyahs go by each one.
Aliyah popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 43 since 2002.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #263 | 1,188 |
| 2020 | #188 | 1,532 |
| 2010 | #143 | 2,163 |
| 2000 | #287 | 1,116 |
| 1990 | #2,600 | 45 |
| 1980 | #3,510 | 23 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Aliyah, counting every spelling?
Aliyah is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #235 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #263 for Aliyah on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,451 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aliyah | 1,188 | #263 | 6,603 |
| Elia | 263 | #970 | 1,493 |
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 Aliyah?
1,188 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Aliyah (0.33 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Aliyah 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 7 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Aliyah.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Aliyah?
About 48,600 people born in the US named Aliyah are alive today, with a median age of 15; half are between 9 and 22. That makes Aliyah 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.
Aliyah by state
How common Aliyah was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Mexico (2.4×), Nevada (2.2×), South Dakota (1.9×), Oregon (1.7×), Arizona (1.6×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Tennessee.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Aliyah: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Aliyah, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Aliyah · Sibling names for Aliyah
Questions about the name Aliyah
What does Aliyah mean?
The origin of Aliyah is uncertain: Arabic 'high, exalted' and Hebrew 'ascent' are separate but similar sources.
How popular is the name Aliyah?
Aliyah was the 263rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,188 babies. Its best year was 2011, when it ranked 133rd with 2,301 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 99 places. More babies were named Aliyah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Aliyah a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Aliyah in the US.
Where is Aliyah most popular?
In 2021–2025, Aliyah was most common in New Mexico (1.93 per 1,000 girls), followed by Nevada and South Dakota.