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Laila as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Laila

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The baby name Laila is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced English: /ˈleɪlə/ (LAY-lə); also /ˈlaɪlə/ (LY-lə). Arabic: [ˈlajlaː].

Laila is Arabic in Origin.

Gender: Female
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: English: /ˈleɪlə/ (LAY-lə); also /ˈlaɪlə/ (LY-lə). Arabic: [ˈlajlaː]

What is the meaning of the name Laila ?

The baby name Laila is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced English: /ˈleɪlə/ (LAY-lə); also /ˈlaɪlə/ (LY-lə). Arabic: [ˈlajlaː].

Laila is Arabic in Origin.

Laila stems chiefly from the Arabic name Layla (ليلى), built on layl “night,” often interpreted as “night; dark beauty” and, by poetic extension, “intoxicating.” Its fame spread across the Arabic- and Persian-speaking worlds through the legend of Qays and Layla, canonized in Nizami Ganjavi’s 12th‑century romance Layla and Majnun, and it remains common in the Middle East and South Asia. Core variants include Layla, Leila, Leyla, and Laela; Turkish favors Leyla, Persian and French often use Leila/Leïla, and Bosnian/Croatian forms appear as Lejla.

In English the name entered wider use in the 19th century through Orientalist literature, then surged after the 1970 release of Eric Clapton’s song “Layla.” In Scandinavia, Laila also aligns with Northern Sámi Láilá, sometimes linked to Helga and interpreted “holy,” giving the name a dual etymology in that region. Related diminutives and spellings include Lela and Leila.

Laila has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Laila

Laila Schou Nilsen Athlete · Born 1919 · Norway Laila Schou Nilsen was a Norwegian athlete best known for speed skating, and she was also a top alpine skier and tennis player. She was one of the pioneers of women’s speed skating in Norway and internationally, alongside fellow Oslo Skating Club skaters Undis Blikken and Synnøve Lie.

Laila – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Girls 2025 #1 — 874
FJ 0 #6 1 374
DJ 0 #17 1 322
MV 0 #18 2 644
AF Girls 0 #21 103 2,402
BN 0 #25 8 2,297
KW Girls 0 #29 1,314 19,177
MV Girls 0 #29 7 2,021
AE Girls 0 #30 1,418 20,968
BN Girls 0 #32 85 5,459
BI Girls 0 #33 1 726
OM Girls 0 #34 822 15,987
QA Girls 0 #42 440 15,378
MT 0 #43 1 1,767
JO Girls 0 #51 1,323 7,570
CM 0 #52 5 2,592
CY 0 #60 1 1,632
MA 0 #61 32,526 20,986
SA Girls 0 #62 3,639 25,931
AF 0 #66 11 1,883
LU 0 #66 1 2,830
OM 0 #74 43 6,215
EG Girls 0 #76 14,529 14,742
JP 0 #76 2 4,057
DK Girls 0 #77 565 7,429
MV Boys 0 #78 2 3,375
ID Girls 0 #82 17 3,319
KW 0 #84 33 5,216
JO 0 #88 51 2,158
LT 0 #88 1 949
KZ 0 #91 4 1,452
QA 0 #91 10 7,011
SD 0 #100 3 2,130
LY 0 #102 976 12,703
TW 0 #103 1 4,523
GE Girls 0 #108 1 1,564
PH 0 #108 3 5,607
GE Boys 0 #110 1 2,055
PS Girls 0 #118 868 10,981
Norway Girls 2025 #120 7 453
EC 0 #120 2 2,502
SY 0 #120 2,267 11,684
MY Girls 0 #123 2,658 24,821
CY Girls 0 #125 1 3,755
BD Girls 0 #126 391 8,413
IQ 0 #126 8 3,533
Switzerland Girls 2024 #128 8 1,786
AE 0 #135 43 10,220
GR 0 #135 1 3,911
MU 0 #136 2 3,613
RS Girls 0 #136 2 1,651
BN Boys 0 #137 3 6,332
PA 0 #137 2 3,797
DK 0 #139 68 5,198
EE Girls 0 #139 4 1,888
TN 0 #140 4,043 13,765
BW Girls 0 #146 6 4,216
EG 0 #150 498 6,387
MT Girls 0 #150 4 3,773
Sweden Girls 2022 #152 28 1,568
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
Finland Girls 2026 #166 3,016 3,895
PR Girls 0 #166 2 3,171
SD Girls 0 #171 210 7,678
LU Girls 0 #172 14 4,850
SA 0 #173 124 10,560
SI Girls 0 #177 1 2,769
PS 0 #180 39 5,692
UY 0 #180 3 2,477
CZ 0 #186 1 3,154
IL Girls 0 #188 755 11,648
AR 0 #191 3 2,915
RU 0 #193 2 3,641
YE 0 #195 225 8,639
BD 0 #197 31 5,992
Finland Girls 0 #198 272 1,368
LT Girls 0 #199 2 1,904
KZ Girls 0 #201 137 5,862
PL 0 #211 2 2,600
AO Girls 0 #213 5 4,575
MY 0 #224 111 12,352
HU Girls 0 #225 1 3,308
Canada Girls 2024 #226 60 2,795
AL Girls 0 #227 1 4,141
MO Girls 0 #227 25 7,056
IR 0 #231 1 4,221
GH 0 #233 11 5,396
NA Girls 0 #233 5 7,146
MO Boys 0 #234 1 5,842
JP Girls 0 #236 10 6,592
IL 0 #237 38 6,291
TW Girls 0 #238 39 8,139
IQ Girls 0 #241 315 11,303
GR Girls 0 #244 6 6,293
PT 0 #248 3 4,161
NA Boys 0 #253 1 6,830
TW Boys 0 #254 3 7,111
BH 0 #255 336 17,937
EC Girls 0 #255 4 3,650
SG 0 #259 11 11,010
AF Boys 0 #266 9 3,535
NG 0 #269 4 5,926
Finland 0 #275 33 830
PH Girls 0 #276 116 13,098
JM Girls 0 #277 2 7,507
GH Girls 0 #284 41 6,973
HR Girls 0 #293 2 3,687
KZ Boys 0 #295 2 6,578
LB 0 #297 491 13,263
MU Girls 0 #299 53 8,539
United States Girls 2024 #322 839 8,487
BR 0 #326 20 5,969
CZ Girls 0 #329 13 5,378
PL Girls 0 #336 19 5,096
CN Girls 0 #337 13 8,829
GT 0 #337 2 5,948
JO Boys 0 #350 28 7,057
NL Girls 0 #350 969 5,933
Spain Girls 0 #351 1,131 5,561
IT Girls 0 #351 3,333 9,415
NL 0 #352 40 2,481
HK 0 #355 3 8,483
MU Boys 0 #369 1 8,477
Austria Girls 0 #370 51 1,885
SG Girls 0 #378 216 18,916
France Girls 2021 #384 22 3,185
Spain 0 #399 54 2,326
MX 0 #399 15 8,339
BO 0 #403 6 6,868
PH Boys 0 #404 5 11,440
Germany 0 #408 30 2,542
CM Girls 0 #411 131 11,671
UY Boys 0 #412 2 5,922
PT Girls 0 #414 38 7,952
ZA 0 #424 24 14,421
CL 0 #430 5 6,867
PA Girls 0 #440 42 9,861
RU Girls 0 #443 56 11,913
SD Boys 0 #459 8 10,523
AR Girls 0 #471 130 8,289
IR Girls 0 #472 59 8,334
AR Boys 0 #481 3 7,628
UY Girls 0 #486 25 6,731
Germany Girls 0 #493 418 4,949
GT Girls 0 #494 12 7,500
GT Boys 0 #499 1 7,625
CO 0 #504 7 7,768
PA Boys 0 #505 1 9,305
HK Girls 0 #512 104 16,104
CR Girls 0 #516 17 11,342
DZ 0 #521 950 20,130
BR Girls 0 #523 526 12,708
PS Boys 0 #533 16 10,655
CM Boys 0 #535 16 12,054
HK Boys 0 #555 3 12,905
BD Boys 0 #561 16 10,045
IR Boys 0 #563 3 10,162
EG Boys 0 #587 319 15,035
BO Girls 0 #588 24 9,488
IL Boys 0 #595 13 10,983
IN Girls 0 #595 37 13,121
IT 0 #608 107 4,183
IQ Boys 0 #640 28 13,071
NG Girls 0 #652 136 15,093
QA Boys 0 #679 29 18,093
CL Boys 0 #700 1 13,390
KW Boys 0 #713 57 18,755
SG Boys 0 #731 9 17,960
BR Boys 0 #778 8 12,213
MX Girls 0 #822 392 17,781
CL Girls 0 #830 22 14,098
OM Boys 0 #833 49 17,948
United States Boys 2013 #870 5 7,323
PE Girls 0 #886 58 14,861
Spain Boys 0 #907 24 5,610
CO Girls 0 #916 163 16,140
PE Boys 0 #926 1 14,506
NL Boys 0 #927 25 5,873
TR 0 #947 270 19,440
ZA Girls 0 #952 190 25,928
CO Boys 0 #977 5 15,656
NG Boys 0 #994 8 16,906
AE Boys 0 #998 95 22,615
MY Boys 0 #1,018 94 25,439
MX Boys 0 #1,025 9 16,355
IN Boys 0 #1,032 8 16,750
ZA Boys 0 #1,269 4 25,619
SA Boys 0 #1,333 282 28,008
IT Boys 0 #1,422 50 10,046

Laila is popular in 90 countries — most recent births per country:

Norway
France
Canada
Scotland, United Kingdom
Switzerland

Did we miss something about this name? Let us know!

People also ask about Laila

Laila is predominantly a girl's name.
Laila is a 2 syllable name, pronounced English: /ˈleɪlə/ (LAY-lə); also /ˈlaɪlə/ (LY-lə). Arabic: [ˈlajlaː].
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Layla, Leila, Leyla, Lailah, Laylah and Lejla.
Across languages, Laila has these equivalents: Nyx (Greek, goddess of night), Nox (Latin for night), Nuit (French word for night, poetic).
Yes, very popular — Laila ranked #1 in Ireland in 2025, and appears in official birth registries across 10 countries.
Laila ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2025).
Laila's popularity is holding steady. It moved from #121 in 2015 to #120 in 2025 in Norway.
Yes — 1 notable people named Laila are in our database, including Laila Schou Nilsen (Athlete).