Fun Facts About the Name Lilah
- More than 24 thousand babies named Lilah: U.S. records list 24,652 babies given the name Lilah from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Lilah Mean?
Lilah is a feminine given name used in English, usually treated as a spelling variant of Lila or Layla. In its main origin it comes from Arabic Layla, built on layl, the Arabic word for "night." The same sense appears in Hebrew, where laylah (לַיְלָה) also means "night"; Arabic and Hebrew share the Semitic root l-y-l. The literal meaning is simply "night," an image Arabic poetry used for a beloved and, by custom, for dark beauty.
A separate name shares the spelling Lila: Sanskrit līlā (लीला), meaning "play," "sport," or "amusement," and in Hindu theology the free "divine play" of a deity. That Indian name is normally written Lila or Leela. Because the English spellings overlap, the Arabic "night" name and the Sanskrit "play" name are sometimes merged, though their origins are independent. A third, similar-looking Hebrew name, Lilach (לילך), means "lilac" and is unrelated to Lilah.
Lilah Name History & Origins
The Arabic name Layla is old and appears in early Arabic poetry. It is best known through the romance of Layla and Majnun, the story of the poet Qays and his beloved Layla, which became a classic of Arabic literature and was retold in Persian by Nizami Ganjavi in the twelfth century. Through Persian, Turkish, and Urdu literature the name traveled as Leyla, Leyli, and Laila.
Hebrew uses laylah for "night," and the name is also used in Hebrew-speaking communities. In English, Lilah belongs to a group of spellings - Lila, Lilah, Layla, Leila, Laila - that circulate for the same "night" name. The Sanskrit name Lila has its own history in South Asia, where līlā names the playful creative activity attributed to the gods, especially in Vaishnava devotion, and it entered English largely through Indian usage and translations of Hindu texts.
How Popular is the Name Lilah?
Lilah recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Its best rank was #179 in 2024.
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 | #179 | 1,736 | 0.1080% |
| 2024 | #179 | 1,685 | 0.1045% |
| 2023 | #198 | 1,498 | 0.0935% |
| 2022 | #219 | 1,364 | 0.0832% |
| 2021 | #244 | 1,250 | 0.0762% |
| 2020 | #240 | 1,257 | 0.0778% |
| 2019 | #287 | 1,153 | 0.0687% |
| 2018 | #287 | 1,155 | 0.0679% |
| 2017 | #272 | 1,177 | 0.0682% |
| 2016 | #299 | 1,092 | 0.0616% |
| 2015 | #314 | 1,032 | 0.0578% |
| 2014 | #316 | 1,051 | 0.0588% |
| 2013 | #305 | 1,049 | 0.0598% |
| 2012 | #311 | 1,032 | 0.0586% |
| 2011 | #306 | 1,045 | 0.0594% |
| 2010 | #335 | 964 | 0.0542% |
| 2009 | #366 | 885 | 0.0482% |
| 2008 | #416 | 774 | 0.0409% |
| 2007 | #572 | 525 | 0.0273% |
| 2006 | #868 | 308 | 0.0162% |
| 2005 | #1,071 | 223 | 0.0121% |
| 2004 | #1,285 | 167 | 0.0091% |
| 2003 | #1,288 | 162 | 0.0089% |
| 2002 | #1,438 | 133 | 0.0074% |
| 2001 | #1,709 | 106 | 0.0059% |
| 2000 | #1,877 | 91 | 0.0050% |
| 1999 | #2,192 | 69 | 0.0039% |
| 1998 | #2,823 | 47 | 0.0027% |
| 1997 | #3,768 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1996 | #3,194 | 37 | 0.0021% |
| 1995 | #6,131 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1994 | #6,188 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1993 | #5,349 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1992 | #7,315 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1991 | #7,729 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1990 | #5,427 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1989 | #6,780 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1988 | #6,501 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1987 | #4,590 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1986 | #4,279 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1985 | #4,368 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1984 | #6,565 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1983 | #4,387 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1982 | #4,453 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1981 | #5,121 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1980 | #5,745 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1979 | #5,608 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1978 | #3,162 | 25 | 0.0016% |
| 1977 | #5,095 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1976 | #3,891 | 17 | 0.0012% |
| 1975 | #4,739 | 13 | 0.0009% |
| 1974 | #5,583 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1973 | #5,051 | 11 | 0.0008% |
| 1972 | #6,943 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1971 | #9,021 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1970 | #6,097 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1969 | #6,324 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #5,420 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1967 | #7,366 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1965 | #5,565 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1963 | #3,409 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1962 | #4,149 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1961 | #5,614 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1959 | #5,937 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1958 | #5,185 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1957 | #4,082 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1956 | #4,329 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1955 | #6,330 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #4,484 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1953 | #3,854 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1952 | #3,988 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1951 | #3,620 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1949 | #4,476 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1948 | #3,489 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1947 | #3,588 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1946 | #4,237 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1945 | #3,546 | 8 | 0.0006% |
| 1944 | #3,261 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1943 | #3,376 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1942 | #2,919 | 11 | 0.0008% |
| 1941 | #1,778 | 21 | 0.0017% |
| 1940 | #2,870 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1939 | #2,680 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1938 | #1,732 | 21 | 0.0019% |
| 1937 | #2,388 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1936 | #2,455 | 12 | 0.0012% |
| 1935 | #2,659 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1934 | #2,245 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1933 | #2,483 | 12 | 0.0012% |
| 1932 | #2,952 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1931 | #2,160 | 15 | 0.0014% |
| 1930 | #1,514 | 27 | 0.0024% |
| 1929 | #1,795 | 21 | 0.0019% |
| 1928 | #1,757 | 23 | 0.0020% |
| 1927 | #1,852 | 22 | 0.0018% |
| 1926 | #1,692 | 25 | 0.0021% |
| 1925 | #1,360 | 35 | 0.0029% |
| 1924 | #1,631 | 28 | 0.0022% |
| 1923 | #1,706 | 25 | 0.0021% |
| 1922 | #1,525 | 30 | 0.0025% |
| 1921 | #1,214 | 41 | 0.0033% |
| 1920 | #1,364 | 34 | 0.0028% |
| 1919 | #1,410 | 31 | 0.0027% |
| 1918 | #1,848 | 21 | 0.0018% |
| 1917 | #1,229 | 35 | 0.0032% |
| 1916 | #1,157 | 38 | 0.0036% |
| 1915 | #1,355 | 28 | 0.0028% |
| 1914 | #1,108 | 30 | 0.0039% |
| 1913 | #992 | 30 | 0.0048% |
| 1912 | #1,578 | 13 | 0.0023% |
| 1911 | #1,210 | 15 | 0.0036% |
| 1910 | #1,301 | 13 | 0.0033% |
| 1909 | #1,183 | 13 | 0.0037% |
| 1908 | #1,238 | 12 | 0.0036% |
| 1907 | #1,180 | 12 | 0.0038% |
| 1906 | #1,380 | 9 | 0.0030% |
| 1905 | #1,133 | 12 | 0.0041% |
| 1904 | #1,575 | 7 | 0.0025% |
| 1903 | #956 | 14 | 0.0053% |
| 1902 | #1,179 | 10 | 0.0038% |
| 1901 | #736 | 20 | 0.0084% |
| 1900 | #1,200 | 11 | 0.0037% |
| 1899 | #806 | 17 | 0.0073% |
| 1898 | #904 | 15 | 0.0058% |
| 1897 | #958 | 12 | 0.0051% |
| 1896 | #1,500 | 6 | 0.0025% |
| 1895 | #758 | 18 | 0.0077% |
| 1894 | #769 | 16 | 0.0072% |
| 1893 | #882 | 12 | 0.0056% |
| 1892 | #942 | 11 | 0.0052% |
| 1891 | #869 | 11 | 0.0059% |
| 1890 | #1,157 | 7 | 0.0037% |
| 1889 | #1,083 | 7 | 0.0039% |
| 1887 | #1,234 | 5 | 0.0034% |
| 1886 | #867 | 8 | 0.0055% |
| 1885 | #1,132 | 5 | 0.0038% |
| 1884 | #894 | 7 | 0.0054% |
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 Lilah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You always bring to completion anything you start. You are generous but like to see returns from your giving. You have an executive ability, you are a leader. You are moral, balanced, honest and intellectual, and you may attain spirituality. You are wise and practical with an appreciation of beauty. You always think before you act. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You find the best contentment in life when you own your own home and provide well for your family and loved ones. You have a great sense of responsibility and duty. You are comforting, appreciative and affectionate. Your obligation in life is to hold justice and truth, and if you follow the Law, you can find the great happiness and satisfaction.
✦ Lilah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Lilah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.