Fun Facts About the Name Amaya
- More than 43 thousand babies named Amaya: U.S. records list 43,527 babies given the name Amaya from 1880 through 2025. Even 22 boys received the name Amaya - about 1 boy for every 1,978 girls.
What Does the Name Amaya Mean?
Amaya is usually described as a Basque name meaning the end, but the name's deeper origin is not certain. It is the Spanish spelling of the Basque feminine name Amaia, which comes from the place name Amaya (Basque Amaia), a village and rocky height in the province of Burgos in northern Spain.
The place name is older than the modern given name and is generally treated as pre-Roman, possibly from a Cantabrian or other pre-Indo-European layer of the Iberian Peninsula. Its literal meaning was never recorded. The familiar gloss the end rests on the resemblance to Basque amai (end) and amaiera (ending), so it is best described as a traditional interpretation rather than a documented translation. A less common suggestion connects the name to Basque ama (mother).
Similar-looking names in other languages are separate. Sanskrit amaya can be read as "without illusion" (from a-, "not," and māyā, "illusion"), and Japanese Amaya is built from unrelated Japanese elements; neither is the source of the Basque name.
Amaya Name History & Origins
The place name Amaya is recorded in medieval Iberia. The fortified site called Peña Amaya, in what is now northern Burgos province, stood on the frontier between the Christian north and Muslim-ruled al-Andalus in the ninth century, and the village of Amaya grew at its foot. Spanish tradition also ties the height to the earlier Cantabrian peoples of the region.
The Basque given name Amaia came into wider use in the twentieth century, along with many other Basque personal names promoted during the Basque cultural and language revival. The spelling Amaya follows the Spanish form of the place name and is used in Spain and Latin America, while Amaia is the standard Basque spelling.
Amaya is also a Japanese surname, and occasionally a given name, written with various kanji combinations and unrelated to the Basque and Spanish name. In the Philippines, the name was used for the title character of the historical television drama Amaya (2011 - 2012).
How Popular is the Name Amaya?
Amaya recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2018. Its best rank was #130 in 2018.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #180 | 1,723 | 0.1072% |
| 2024 | #169 | 1,809 | 0.1121% |
| 2023 | #162 | 1,758 | 0.1097% |
| 2022 | #170 | 1,723 | 0.1051% |
| 2021 | #161 | 1,780 | 0.1086% |
| 2020 | #139 | 1,939 | 0.1200% |
| 2019 | #133 | 2,061 | 0.1229% |
| 2018 | #130 | 2,277 | 0.1339% |
| 2017 | #176 | 1,718 | 0.0995% |
| 2016 | #204 | 1,589 | 0.0897% |
| 2015 | #213 | 1,528 | 0.0856% |
| 2014 | #237 | 1,367 | 0.0765% |
| 2013 | #234 | 1,368 | 0.0780% |
| 2012 | #212 | 1,477 | 0.0839% |
| 2011 | #209 | 1,485 | 0.0844% |
| 2010 | #226 | 1,395 | 0.0785% |
| 2009 | #202 | 1,598 | 0.0870% |
| 2008 | #199 | 1,679 | 0.0888% |
| 2007 | #201 | 1,699 | 0.0884% |
| 2006 | #215 | 1,594 | 0.0838% |
| 2005 | #226 | 1,513 | 0.0819% |
| 2004 | #209 | 1,619 | 0.0882% |
| 2003 | #181 | 1,769 | 0.0968% |
| 2002 | #283 | 1,099 | 0.0612% |
| 2001 | #295 | 1,056 | 0.0586% |
| 2000 | #196 | 1,632 | 0.0899% |
| 1999 | #398 | 704 | 0.0397% |
| 1998 | #1,458 | 117 | 0.0066% |
| 1997 | #1,696 | 92 | 0.0053% |
| 1996 | #2,210 | 61 | 0.0035% |
| 1995 | #3,154 | 36 | 0.0020% |
| 1994 | #3,617 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1993 | #3,991 | 26 | 0.0014% |
| 1992 | #5,729 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1991 | #6,604 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1990 | #7,324 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1989 | #6,555 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1988 | #7,135 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1987 | #6,354 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1986 | #5,770 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1985 | #6,042 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1984 | #7,423 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1983 | #5,471 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1982 | #4,724 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1981 | #7,428 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1980 | #10,449 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1979 | #6,712 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1978 | #6,403 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1977 | #8,475 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1976 | #8,194 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1975 | #9,121 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1972 | #8,317 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | #12,355 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2015 | #12,184 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2013 | #12,234 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #8,966 | 7 | 0.0004% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Amaya Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You are seeking freedom, opportunities to enjoy life: to make love, to go places and to do things. You are very adventurous and willing to take risk to achieve your objectives. New ways and new experiences can't satisfy your restless nature. One adventure leads you to another. You are honest and fair, because you know that this is the only way to receive justice and honesty from other people. But your personal growth is vital for you, and it is difficult to be tied down by rules and obligations. Your restless spirit might best controlled by choosing the field of work that meet your demand for action and adventure.
✦ Amaya's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Amaya's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.