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Layla

girl name
Origin
Arabic
Syllables
2
Peak era
2010s
Today
▲ Rising

Torn between Layla and another name? Compare them side by side →

Meaning

"night" in Arabic; the name of Qays’s beloved in the Layla and Majnun romance

The story

In a painted classroom, Layla and Majnun are falling in love while the other children get on with their handwriting. The scene comes from a sixteenth-century manuscript made in Herat, in present-day Afghanistan. Its lovers belong to an older Arab tale: Layla, whose name means night in Arabic, is the beloved of Qays, known as Majnun. Nizami retold their story in Persian in 1188, giving later artists that classroom to imagine. Centuries afterward, another reader found a song in it. Ian Dallas gave Eric Clapton Rudolf Gelpke’s free translation of the romance, which inspired Layla on the Derek and the Dominos album released in 1970. Between the children practicing their letters and the musicians making a record sits a long history of people finding something of their own in the same love story.

More names with stories →

Layla across languages

One shared root links 7 names across 3 languages.

Shared root: from Arabic layl "night", spread by the seventh-century romance of Layla and Majnun

The constellation

LaylaArabicLeylaTurkish

More branches

LeilaArabic · variantLilaEnglish · variantLilahEnglish · variantLylaEnglish · variantLelaEnglish · variant

Layla in song

Layla
Derek and the Dominos (1970)
Eric Clapton's howl of unrequited love for his best friend's wife, named after a Persian love poem and famous for the long piano coda that arrives out of nowhere.

How popular is Layla around the world?

In the United States, 35,060 babies were named Layla between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 36 girls were registered as Layla in 2017.

Layla is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, Scotland, New Zealand, Ireland, England and Wales, Canada, New South Wales, Puerto Rico, Mexico City, Austria, France, Argentina, Poland, Brazil, Spain and Chile.

Layla crosses languages: it is in the latest top 300 of an English-speaking birth record and of a Spanish-speaking one. The full list: English and Spanish

United States

1 in 620

In the United States, 35,060 babies were named Layla between 2020 and 2025.

1890speak 2010s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Layla peaked in the 2010s.

Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration

See the full list for the United States →

South Australia

1 in 510 · 2017

In South Australia, 36 girls were registered as Layla in 2017.

1970peak 2013

share of that year’s name registrations

Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names

See the full list for South Australia →

Scotland

1 in 510

In Scotland, 89 girls named Layla were registered in 2024, the 41st most common name among girls that year.

1974peak 2014

share of that year’s name registrations

Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names

See the full list for Scotland →

New Zealand

1 in 650

In New Zealand, 89 girls named Layla were registered in 2025.

1990peak 2022

share of that year’s name registrations

First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time

See the full list for New Zealand →

Ireland

1 in 650

In Ireland, 83 girls named Layla were born in 2025, the 60th most common name among girls that year.

1980peak 20122025

share of that year’s name registrations

Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names

See the full list for Ireland →

England and Wales

1 in 700

In England and Wales, 833 girls named Layla were born in 2025, the 50th most common name among girls that year.

1996peak 20122025

share of that year’s name registrations

Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales

See the full list for England and Wales →

Canada

1 in 870

In Canada, 419 girls named Layla were born in 2024, the 50th most common name among girls that year.

1991peak 2020

share of that year’s name registrations

First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)

See the full list for Canada →

New South Wales

#35 · 2025

In New South Wales, 162 girls named Layla were registered in 2025, ranked 35th in that year’s top 100 for girls.

2000peak 2020

share of that year’s top-100 registrations

New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names

See the full list for New South Wales →

Puerto Rico

1 in 1,400

In Puerto Rico, 13 babies were named Layla in 2025, and 351 have carried the name since 1998.

1998peak 20172025

share of that year’s births on record

First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)

See the full list for Puerto Rico →

Mexico City City

1 in 2,500

In Mexico City, there were 47 registrations of Layla in 2022.

2000peak 2022

share of that year’s registrations in the city

Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023 (1 registration through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023

See the full list for Mexico City →

Austria

1 in 3,200

In Austria, 24 girls named Layla were born in 2025, the 249th most common name among girls that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.

1984peak 2020

share of that year’s births on record

Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)

See the full list for Austria →

France

1 in 5,200

In France, about 125 girls named Layla were born in 2025, the 416th most common name among girls that year.

1950peak 2023

share of that year’s births on record

Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)

See the full list for France →

Argentina

1 in 6,700

In Argentina, 99 newborns were given the name Layla in 2024.

2012peak 2024

share of that year’s name registrations

Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024

See the full list for Argentina →

Poland

1 in 7,200

In Poland, 34 girls named Layla were born in 2025, the 211th most common name among girls that year.

2000peak 2025

share of that year’s name registrations

First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)

See the full list for Poland →

Brazil

1 in 9,900

At the 2022 census, 20,577 people in Brazil were named Layla, ranked 1,043rd, with a median age of 11.
Among people named Layla living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 2010s than in any other decade.

1960speak 2010s

people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth

The census also counted 4,669 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

See the full list for Brazil →

Spain

1 in 19,000

In Spain, 2,328 residents are named Layla, the 837th most common name among women, with a mean age of 26.2 years.

Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025

See the full list for Spain →

Chile

1 in 25,000

In Chile, 7 girls were registered as Layla in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.

First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021

See the full list for Chile →

Montevideo City

last on record 2008

Layla is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.

Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial

See the full list for Montevideo →

Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.

All records: the most popular baby names around the world →

When you meet Layla

Most people given the name Layla in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Layla

Aaliyah Sofia Amina Fatima Amira Nour

Where Layla travels

Somali · traditionally meaning night

Keep exploring

Names like Layla · Names that go with Layla · Middle names for Layla · Somali baby names · Arab American baby names · Arabic baby names · Nickname-proof names

The Layla deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Layla truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Layla fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

Does Layla fit YOUR family?

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