Yoruba Girl Names
Yoruba female names come from the Yoruba language of southwestern Nigeria and adjoining parts of Benin and Togo. They are typically compounds built from meaningful morphemes. Productive elements include Ade (crown), Ola (wealth), Ayo (joy), and Olu/Oluwa (lord/God). A notable feminine feature is the use of affectionate or nurturing endings such as -nike “cherished” and -moke “pampered,” and the calming -tutu, seen in Adenike, Morenike, Jumoke, and Adetutu. Overall gender marking is limited, so structural patterns largely mirror male names.
In modern use, girls frequently adopt shortened forms as stand‑alone names, for example Kemi, Jola, and Nike. Orthographic tone marks are often omitted in English‑language contexts. Common examples include Folashade, Foluke, Folake, Arike, Bolanle, Adenike, Morenike, Jumoke, Kemi, and Adetutu.
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sade | Crowned with honor; "honor confers a crown" (short form of Folashade) | Yoruba | Girl | 737 #1 | |
| Oshun | Name of the Yoruba river goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, fresh water and wealth | Yoruba | Girl | 224 #2 | |
| Adeya | Varies by origin: possibly "God's ornament" (Hebrew Adaya) or related to "crown" (from Yoruba Adé); commonly rendered as 'adorned', 'noble', or 'beloved'. | Yoruba | Girl | 211 #3 | |
| Iya | In Yoruba, Iya means "mother." In Russian/Slavic contexts it is used as a feminine given name. It is also sometimes treated as a variant or cognate of the Hebrew name Aya (meaning 'bird' or 'to fly'). | Hebrew, Russian, Slavic, Yoruba | Girl | 161 #4 | |
| Iyah | Likely 'mother' (from Yoruba Iyá); variant spellings may connect to other meanings such as Japanese 'color/design', Arabic 'verse/sign', or Hebrew 'bird' depending on origin | Yoruba | Girl | 139 #5 | |
| Damilola | Bless me with wealth | Yoruba | Girl | 49 #6 | |
| Adesewa | The crown has found beauty/honor (Ade = crown; sewa ≈ beauty/honor) | Yoruba | Girl | 47 #7 | |
| Oya | Turkish: "lace, decorative needlework"; Yoruba: name of the Orisha Ọya, a goddess of winds, storms, change, and rebirth. | Turkish, Yoruba | Girl | 45 #8 | |
| Abeni | “We asked for her” - a prayed-for or long-awaited daughter | Yoruba | Girl | 43 #9 | |
| Omolara | From Yoruba Ọmọ (child) + lárá - commonly rendered 'a child is family' or 'a child is cherished/valuable'. | Yoruba | Girl | 22 #10 | |
| Yemi | Befits me | Yoruba | Girl | 22 #11 | |
| Omolola | "child is wealth" (the child brings wealth/honor) | Yoruba | Girl | 20 #12 | |
| Adenike | “the crown is cherished” or “cherished crown” (from Ade = crown, Nike = cherished/pampered) | Yoruba | Girl | 17 #13 | |
| Jola | Polish: diminutive of Jolanta/Yolanda meaning 'violet' (flower). Yoruba/West African: element in names associated with wealth/honor. | Polish, Yoruba | Girl | 15 #14 | |
| Arinola | One who is surrounded by wealth / center of wealth | Yoruba | Girl | 5 #15 | |
| Fayola | Brings joy and wealth; roughly 'one who brings joy and honor/wealth'. | Yoruba | Girl | 5 #16 | |
| Titilayo | Eternal joy; 'joy has become everlasting.' | Yoruba | Girl | 5 #17 | |
| Abebi | “we asked for her” - a desired/sought-after daughter; an answered prayer | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Abike | Born to be pampered; cherished/beloved | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Abimbolatemi | Born into wealth; "wealth is mine" | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adejumoke | Crown joins to pamper | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adekina | From Yoruba 'Ade' meaning 'crown'; often interpreted as 'little crown' or 'royal child'. | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adelana | Likely "the crown has come home" (from Yoruba Ade- 'crown'); alternatively linked to 'noble' via Adelina | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adeniyat | Related to royalty - "worthy of the crown" or "the crown is honorable" | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adetoun | From 'Ade' (crown) + 'toun/tún' (has returned / is worthy); commonly rendered 'the crown has returned' or 'worthy of the crown'. | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adetounrayo | The crown brings joy | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adetutu | Royal peace; 'the crown brings/has peace.' | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Adunni | Pleasant to have | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Ajiya | Possibly 'invincible' (from Sanskrit Ajaya) or 'treasure/savings' (from Hausa); broadly associated with strength and value | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Akanke | Beloved; one who is cherished or pampered | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Akeyo | Likely Japanese: composed of aki (bright/autumn) + yo (world/generation) - roughly 'bright world' or 'autumn world'. If of West African origin, meaning is uncertain and may differ. | Japanese, Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Arike | Beloved; one to be cherished or pampered. | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Ayoka | One who brings or causes joy | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bisola | Born into wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bolanle | Wealth meets/returns home; finds wealth at home | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bolanlefunmi | May wealth come to me; bring wealth into (my) home. | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bolarinye | One who comes into or is granted wealth/honor | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bolatito | Born into genuine wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Bukky | God added honor/wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Denola | From Yoruba elements related to ola = 'wealth' - broadly 'brings wealth' or 'royalty/crown and wealth' | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Folake | One who is pampered or cherished (often interpreted as 'pampered with wealth or affection') | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Folashade | Crowned with honor/wealth; 'honor/wealth confers a crown.' | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Foluke | One who is cherished or endowed with wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Iremisola | My blessing brings wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Irete | Hope; expectation | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Iretiola | Hope of wealth | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Iyabo | Mother has returned | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Jumoke | Beloved; a child to be cherished | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Keme | Cherished, pampered; (as short for Oluwakemi) 'God pampers me' | Yoruba | Girl | — | |
| Kemi | Pampered, cherished; when part of theophoric names (e.g., Oluwakemi) often interpreted as 'pampered by God' | Yoruba | Girl | — |
Yoruba Girls name popularity over time
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Yoruba-origin name in our dataset.