Fun Facts About the Name Amla
- 26 babies named Amla: U.S. records list 26 babies given the name Amla from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Amla Mean?
Amla is a given name used mainly in India, where it is tied to two related Sanskrit words. The first is amala (अमल), an adjective meaning "spotless," "pure," or "free of blemish," formed from the negative prefix a- plus mala ("dirt," "stain," "impurity"). The second is the name of the amla tree and its fruit, āmalakī or āmalaka (आमलकी / आमलक), the Indian gooseberry (Phyllanthus emblica), whose Hindi form is āṁvlā (आँवला).
The likeness between amala ("spotless") and āmalaka (the fruit) has produced a common explanation that the tree is named for the "pure" or purifying character of its fruit, which is a central rejuvenating remedy in Ayurvedic medicine. Whether the botanical name actually comes from amala is not settled; some treatments regard the resemblance as folk etymology, and the deeper origin of āmalaka is uncertain.
Read through amala, the name's literal sense is "pure" or "spotless." Read through the fruit, it names the amla tree itself. The related form Amala, with an extra vowel, is the more common spelling as a personal name, while Amla follows the Hindi pronunciation of the fruit.
Amla Name History & Origins
The Sanskrit adjective amala is old and appears in classical and religious Indian texts as an epithet for people, things, and deities that are without stain. The tree, by contrast, is named in Sanskrit botanical and medical writing as āmalakī and āmalaka. It is described in the classical Ayurvedic compendia, including the Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita, as a major medicinal fruit, and it remains one of the three ingredients of the herbal formula triphala. In Indian temple architecture the same word yields amalaka, the ribbed, cushion-shaped stone that crowns the tower of many North Indian temples and is modeled on the fruit.
As a personal name, Amla belongs to modern Indian usage, where names drawn from plants and names built on amala are both familiar. The precise path by which either the fruit name or the adjective became a given name is not documented, and no single earlier form can be shown to stand behind every modern bearer.
Amla also occurs as a surname among people of Indian descent, notably in South Africa, where the cricketer Hashim Amla bears a family name brought by Gujarati immigrant ancestors. That surname use is separate from the given name and does not by itself account for the given name's history.
How Popular is the Name Amla?
Amla has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2025. Its best rank was #10,998 in 2025.
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 | #10,998 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2024 | #15,393 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2023 | #11,245 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2021 | #15,432 | 5 | 0.0003% |
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 Amla 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 desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Amla's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Amla's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.