Malayah
Girl name · #1084 in 2025 · Rare
Malayah ranks #1084 among American girls' names as of 2025, with 223 newborns given the name that year. A decade ago it stood at #1199, so the name has been rising over the past ten years. Roughly one in every 8,072 girls born in 2025 was named Malayah.
Babies named Malayah per year. Source: SSA.
The 31-year story
Malayah first appears in the Social Security records in 1994, when 5 girls received the name. Its all-time peak is essentially right now: 2022, with 333 babies and a rank of #840. Names at their peak can keep climbing — or be one trend cycle from the long slide that eventually hits most popular names. Following the curve matters more than today's snapshot: a name's position on its rise-peak-decline arc is the best predictor of how common it will feel in a kindergarten class five years from now.
Unlock the 5-year forecast and compare Malayah against up to 5 other names.
Uniqueness: will there be another Malayah in class?
On our rarity read — which blends how common Malayah is today with its five-year momentum — the name reads as "rare". A high score means genuine rarity — your Malayah will likely be the only one in the room, with the occasional spelling-out as the price.
Where Malayah is most common
Geography matters for names, and Malayah is no exception. Adjusted for how many girls are born in each state, Malayah is most common in MI (0.4 per 1,000), PA (0.3 per 1,000), OH (0.3 per 1,000), GA (0.3 per 1,000), IL (0.2 per 1,000) — against a national average of about 0.2 per 1,000 girls. These are per-capita rates, so they show where Malayah is a genuine regional favorite rather than just where the most babies are born.
Names like Malayah
Statistically, parents drawn to Malayah tend to be choosing among names with similar popularity arcs, era profiles, and sounds — the closest matches in our model are Kamiyah, Amayah, Jalayah, Zariyah, and Alaiyah.
KamiyahAmayahJalayahZariyahAlaiyahSariyahZaliyahKalayah
Rank history (last 25 years)
| Year | Babies named Malayah | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 223 | #1082 |
| 2024 | 233 | #1066 |
| 2023 | 267 | #967 |
| 2022 | 333 | #840 |
| 2021 | 307 | #884 |
| 2020 | 272 | #942 |
| 2019 | 291 | #909 |
| 2018 | 228 | #1096 |
| 2017 | 246 | #1046 |
| 2016 | 241 | #1078 |
| 2015 | 208 | #1199 |
| 2014 | 207 | #1183 |
| 2013 | 210 | #1144 |
| 2012 | 173 | #1351 |
| 2011 | 176 | #1324 |
| 2010 | 135 | #1603 |
| 2009 | 163 | #1432 |
| 2008 | 107 | #1966 |
| 2007 | 67 | #2710 |
| 2006 | 62 | #2815 |
| 2005 | 52 | #3052 |
| 2004 | 43 | #3444 |
| 2003 | 30 | #4307 |
| 2002 | 30 | #4179 |
| 2001 | 17 | #6322 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Malayah a popular girl name?
Malayah ranked #1084 among girls in 2025 with 223 babies given the name — outside the top 500, making it an uncommon pick. Ten years earlier it ranked #1199.
When was the name Malayah most popular?
Malayah peaked in 2022, when 333 American girls received the name (ranked #840 that year). That peak is current — the name is at or near its all-time high right now.
How rare is the name Malayah?
In 2025, roughly 1 in 8,072 newborn American girls was named Malayah. On our rarity scale (rarity blended with momentum) we classify it as "rare".
Data source: U.S. Social Security Administration name statistics, 1880–2025, national and state files. Counts reflect Social Security card applications; names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a state-year are suppressed by the SSA.