Layla
Layla was the 36th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 5,338 babies. Its best year was 2019, when it ranked 23rd with 6,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 6 places. More babies were named Layla in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning night · Arabic
Say it LAY-luh /ˈleɪlə/
- Rank in 2025
- #36 girls, down 12 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 5,338girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20196,523 babies
- Total since 1880
- 129,245babies recorded
What does the name Layla mean?
Layla is one of many English spellings of the Arabic name usually written Leila or Layla. Wiktionary says it entered English use through 19th-century literature. Wiktionary notes that since the late 20th century this spelling is often chosen in English simply for its sound. Wiktionary traces the Arabic name Layla to an old Semitic word for 'night', the same word behind Arabic layl, 'night'.
ليلى (Arabic, “Laylā”)لَيْل (Arabic, “night”)
How sure is this? Probable.
See also: Arabic names.
Layla popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 109 since 2004.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #36 | 5,338 |
| 2020 | #24 | 6,228 |
| 2010 | #36 | 5,901 |
| 2000 | #407 | 698 |
| 1990 | #1,251 | 132 |
| 1980 | #1,085 | 130 |
| 1970 | #6,722 | 7 |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | #4,542 | 7 |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Layla, counting every spelling?
Layla is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #27 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #36 for Layla on its own. Together these spellings went to 6,556 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Layla | 5,338 | #36 | 28,818 |
| Laila | 755 | #413 | 4,872 |
| Laylah | 179 | #1,254 | 1,284 |
| Lailah | 131 | #1,602 | 955 |
| Leilah | 125 | #1,660 | 753 |
| Laela | 22 | #5,644 | 183 |
| Laelah | — | — | 51 |
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 Layla?
5,338 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Layla (1.48 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Layla born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is about 1 in 36. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 2 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Layla.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Layla?
About 128,100 people born in the US named Layla are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 6 and 16. That makes Layla a young name: most people with it are children.
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.
Layla by state
How common Layla was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Delaware (2.9×), Rhode Island (2.5×), Vermont (2.3×), Wyoming (2.2×), New Mexico (2.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Utah, Texas, Washington.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Layla: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Layla, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Layla · Sibling names for Layla
Questions about the name Layla
What does Layla mean?
Layla means “night” (Arabic origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Layla?
Layla was the 36th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 5,338 babies. Its best year was 2019, when it ranked 23rd with 6,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 6 places. More babies were named Layla in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Layla a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Layla in the US.
Where is Layla most popular?
In 2021–2025, Layla was most common in Delaware (10.40 per 1,000 girls), followed by Rhode Island and Vermont.