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Layla as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Layla

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The baby name Layla is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced LAY-lah (IPA: /ˈleɪlə/).

Layla is Arabic in Origin.

Gender: Female
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: LAY-lah (IPA: /ˈleɪlə/)

What is the meaning of the name Layla ?

The baby name Layla is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced LAY-lah (IPA: /ˈleɪlə/).

Layla is Arabic in Origin.

Layla derives from Arabic Laylā (ليلى), from the Semitic root layl "night," conveying senses of "night; born at night" and, in classical poetry, "intoxication" or "dark beauty." The name spread across the Islamic world and neighboring languages, yielding variants such as Leila and Laila (English/Persian), Leyla (Turkish/Azerbaijani), Lejla (Bosnian), and Lylah or Laylah in modern English; related forms appear in Hebrew (Laila, "night") through the same root.

Usage is anchored in the celebrated tragic romance of Qays and Layla, immortalized in the 12th-century Persian poem Layla and Majnun by Nizami Ganjavi, which made Layla a byword for devoted, unattainable love. Orientalist literature introduced the form Leila to 19th-century Europe, and the rock ballad "Layla" (1970) by Derek and the Dominos propelled the spelling Layla in the English-speaking world. Today it’s widely favored for its luminous meaning, lyrical sound, and cross-cultural familiarity.

Layla has the following similar or variant Names

Layla – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Girls 2025 #1 — 874
Germany Girls 2025 #1 — 411
BW 0 #19 1 960
DJ Girls 0 #29 1 488
BN 0 #31 2 2,297
MV Girls 0 #35 1 2,021
United States Girls 2024 #37 5,305 8,487
ID 0 #39 1 2,238
Canada Girls 2024 #50 419 2,795
IQ Girls 0 #51 1,599 11,303
New Zealand Girls 2010 #64 48 98
AZ Girls 0 #73 3 1,051
AF 0 #76 1 1,883
JP 0 #77 1 4,057
LB 0 #78 2,042 13,263
BG 0 #82 1 1,799
CN 0 #85 2 3,857
AF Girls 0 #86 9 2,402
SA Girls 0 #88 2,798 25,931
JM 0 #92 2 3,714
BN Girls 0 #94 13 5,459
KZ 0 #94 1 1,452
SD 0 #97 6 2,130
IQ 0 #98 32 3,533
ID Girls 0 #100 3 3,319
QA 0 #100 7 7,011
TW 0 #100 4 4,523
Switzerland Girls 2024 #107 29 1,786
GE Girls 0 #107 2 1,564
PH 0 #110 1 5,607
KW 0 #118 4 5,216
OM 0 #118 4 6,215
CY Girls 0 #122 4 3,755
MA 0 #122 14,084 20,986
BH 0 #125 687 17,937
JO 0 #127 11 2,158
SD Girls 0 #130 333 7,678
PA 0 #134 5 3,797
GR 0 #135 1 3,911
BW Girls 0 #136 13 4,216
RS Girls 0 #137 1 1,651
BN Boys 0 #139 1 6,332
JO Girls 0 #142 324 7,570
MT Girls 0 #150 4 3,773
BW Boys 0 #154 1 4,685
AE 0 #155 23 10,220
Belgium Girls 2024 #161 25 424
QA Girls 0 #162 159 15,378
PR Girls 0 #164 4 3,171
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
Sweden Girls 2022 #166 14 1,568
SI Girls 0 #177 1 2,769
LU Girls 0 #182 9 4,850
RU 0 #194 1 3,641
DK 0 #204 3 5,198
PS 0 #205 14 5,692
PL 0 #212 1 2,600
AE Girls 0 #213 393 20,968
AO Girls 0 #216 2 4,575
HU Girls 0 #223 3 3,308
AL Girls 0 #224 4 4,141
EC Girls 0 #230 10 3,650
IR 0 #230 2 4,221
BG Girls 0 #231 1 3,559
NA Girls 0 #232 6 7,146
BD 0 #235 7 5,992
TN 0 #239 1,713 13,765
SA 0 #240 56 10,560
MO Girls 0 #242 10 7,056
EG Girls 0 #244 2,053 14,742
GR Girls 0 #244 6 6,293
JP Girls 0 #245 7 6,592
JM Girls 0 #246 14 7,507
PT 0 #248 3 4,161
TW Girls 0 #248 29 8,139
OM Girls 0 #252 145 15,987
IL 0 #260 15 6,291
GR Boys 0 #273 1 6,912
DK Girls 0 #275 42 7,429
KW Girls 0 #275 251 19,177
SG 0 #277 6 11,010
YE 0 #288 96 8,639
KZ Girls 0 #290 31 5,862
HR Girls 0 #292 3 3,687
KZ Boys 0 #296 1 6,578
SY 0 #299 715 11,684
PS Girls 0 #300 254 10,981
CZ Boys 0 #305 1 6,530
BD Girls 0 #311 76 8,413
CN Girls 0 #311 39 8,829
MY 0 #312 19 12,352
BR 0 #316 30 5,969
France Girls 2021 #322 84 3,185
PE 0 #326 4 6,350
DK Boys 0 #332 1 7,401
GH Girls 0 #333 5 6,973
GT 0 #336 3 5,948
CZ Girls 0 #344 8 5,378
EG 0 #348 53 6,387
PH Girls 0 #350 41 13,098
HK 0 #355 3 8,483
MU Girls 0 #355 8 8,539
PL Girls 0 #356 9 5,096
JO Boys 0 #367 11 7,057
NL 0 #368 24 2,481
Finland Girls 0 #372 20 1,368
IL Girls 0 #373 273 11,648
Austria Girls 0 #393 28 1,885
BO 0 #401 8 6,868
MX 0 #402 12 8,339
ZA 0 #403 45 14,421
PH Boys 0 #405 4 11,440
LY 0 #412 126 12,703
PA Girls 0 #418 64 9,861
Germany 0 #426 12 2,542
CL 0 #428 7 6,867
SD Boys 0 #431 15 10,523
Spain 0 #434 19 2,326
PT Girls 0 #437 15 7,952
RU Girls 0 #452 47 11,913
CO 0 #467 14 7,768
NL Girls 0 #479 589 5,933
GT Girls 0 #481 25 7,500
IR Girls 0 #493 38 8,334
PA Boys 0 #502 4 9,305
CR Girls 0 #509 24 11,342
CR Boys 0 #510 1 10,188
BR Girls 0 #511 564 12,708
CM Girls 0 #511 30 11,671
SG Girls 0 #513 74 18,916
UY Girls 0 #528 9 6,731
HK Boys 0 #556 2 12,905
PS Boys 0 #556 6 10,655
AR Girls 0 #558 42 8,289
IR Boys 0 #563 3 10,162
BO Girls 0 #573 39 9,488
CM Boys 0 #575 1 12,054
HK Girls 0 #581 35 16,104
IQ Boys 0 #581 87 13,071
Germany Girls 0 #597 253 4,949
BD Boys 0 #603 3 10,045
IL Boys 0 #619 7 10,983
BO Boys 0 #622 1 9,244
Spain Girls 0 #624 393 5,561
ZA Girls 0 #643 616 25,928
Finland Girls 2026 #653 86 3,895
IN Girls 0 #653 2 13,121
IT 0 #668 47 4,183
DZ 0 #672 576 20,130
MY Girls 0 #724 276 24,821
QA Boys 0 #735 9 18,093
SG Boys 0 #739 1 17,960
BR Boys 0 #740 12 12,213
KW Boys 0 #753 17 18,755
NG Girls 0 #762 25 15,093
CL Girls 0 #808 44 14,098
EG Boys 0 #827 60 15,035
MX Girls 0 #863 337 17,781
OM Boys 0 #871 11 17,948
PE Girls 0 #879 65 14,861
United States Boys 2024 #886 7 7,044
IT Girls 0 #914 590 9,415
Spain Boys 0 #920 11 5,610
PE Boys 0 #925 2 14,506
NL Boys 0 #940 12 5,873
TR 0 #940 280 19,440
CO Girls 0 #960 119 16,140
CO Boys 0 #979 3 15,656
NG Boys 0 #1,001 1 16,906
MX Boys 0 #1,029 5 16,355
IN Boys 0 #1,039 1 16,750
AE Boys 0 #1,073 20 22,615
MY Boys 0 #1,088 24 25,439
ZA Boys 0 #1,150 29 25,619
IT Boys 0 #1,458 14 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,490 125 28,008

Layla is popular in 89 countries — most recent births per country:

France
Scotland, United Kingdom
Canada
Ireland
Flanders, Belgium

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People also ask about Layla

Layla is predominantly a girl's name.
Layla is a 2 syllable name, pronounced LAY-lah (IPA: /ˈleɪlə/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Leila, Laila, Leyla, Laylah, Leilah and Lejla.
Across languages, Layla has these equivalents: Lailah (Hebrew), Nisha (Sanskrit), Nyx (Greek, mythological), Nox (Latin).
Yes, very popular — Layla ranked #1 in Ireland in 2025, and appears in official birth registries across 12 countries.
Layla ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2025).
Layla's popularity is holding steady. It moved from #1 in 2015 to #1 in 2025 in Ireland.