At a glance
- In short
- Alaia is a Basque name for girls meaning joyful or happy.
- U.S. rank 2025
- #117 of girl names
- Babies in 2025
- 2,318 (0.13% of girls)
- Trend
- Steady #120 in 2020 to #117 in 2025
- Peak
- #112 in 2024
- Top state
- #56 in Florida
- First recorded
- 1986
Meaning of Alaia
Alaia is a Basque name for girls meaning "joyful" or "happy," from the word alai. Basque is spoken in the Basque Country, which covers parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. In Spanish the name is pronounced ah-LIE-ah, and in American English it is usually said uh-LIE-uh; both put the stress on the second syllable.
In the United States, Alaia was rare as recently as 2014, when it ranked 2,648th. It rose sharply after that, with big jumps in 2015 and 2019, and reached 120th in 2020; it has stayed close to that level since. It peaked in 2024, ranking 112th with 2,429 babies, the most in any year, and placed 117th in 2025 with 2,318 babies.
How to pronounce Alaia
English
- Pronounced uh-LIE-uh /ə.ˈlaɪ.ə/
Spanish
- Pronounced ah-LIE-ah /a.ˈlai.a/
Popularity of Alaia in the U.S.
Alaia was the #117 girl name in the U.S. in 2025, with 2,318 babies. It peaked at #112 in 2024 and has been in the top 1,000 since 2015. It first appears in the records in 1986.
- Rank among U.S. girl names (right scale, #1 at the top)
Year-by-year table, 1986–2025 33 rows
| Year | Babies | Rank | vs previous year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,318 | 117 | ▼ 5 |
| 2024 | 2,429 | 112 | ▲ 8 |
| 2023 | 2,305 | 120 | ▲ 19 |
| 2022 | 2,081 | 139 | ▼ 11 |
| 2021 | 2,219 | 128 | ▼ 8 |
| 2020 | 2,282 | 120 | ▲ 64 |
| 2019 | 1,604 | 184 | ▲ 399 |
| 2018 | 527 | 583 | ▲ 54 |
| 2017 | 461 | 637 | ▼ 22 |
| 2016 | 487 | 615 | ▲ 49 |
| 2015 | 429 | 664 | ▲ 1,984 |
| 2014 | 66 | 2,648 | ▲ 357 |
| 2013 | 55 | 3,005 | ▲ 89 |
| 2012 | 54 | 3,094 | ▲ 358 |
| 2011 | 46 | 3,452 | ▲ 293 |
| 2010 | 41 | 3,745 | ▼ 126 |
| 2009 | 44 | 3,619 | ▲ 560 |
| 2008 | 37 | 4,179 | ▲ 34 |
| 2007 | 36 | 4,213 | ▲ 2,627 |
| 2006 | 18 | 6,840 | ▼ 1,882 |
| 2005 | 26 | 4,958 | ▲ 1,531 |
| 2004 | 18 | 6,489 | ▲ 2,016 |
| 2003 | 12 | 8,505 | ▲ 2,603 |
| 2002 | 8 | 11,108 | ▼ 4,786 |
| 2001 | 17 | 6,322 | ▲ 836 |
| 2000 | 14 | 7,158 | ▲ 7,253 |
| 1999 | 5 | 14,411 | back (not recorded in 1998) |
| 1997 | 10 | 8,334 | ▲ 2,233 |
| 1996 | 7 | 10,567 | back (not recorded in 1995) |
| 1994 | 5 | 13,430 | ▼ 3,871 |
| 1993 | 8 | 9,559 | ▲ 920 |
| 1992 | 7 | 10,479 | back (not recorded in 1987–1991) |
| 1986 | 6 | 9,545 | new |
Alaia by state
Alaia ranks #56 in Florida (2025).
Rank by state 42 states and DC
| State | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 56 | 252 |
| Rhode Island | 64 | 11 |
| New York | 67 | 201 |
| Texas | 72 | 344 |
| New Jersey | 73 | 98 |
| California | 88 | 336 |
| Arizona | 89 | 64 |
| Nevada | 91 | 23 |
| Massachusetts | 95 | 58 |
| Delaware | 98 | 8 |
| Connecticut | 111 | 26 |
| New Mexico | 111 | 12 |
| Illinois | 116 | 79 |
| Maryland | 130 | 35 |
| Washington | 131 | 51 |
| Alaska | 134 | 5 |
| North Carolina | 141 | 70 |
| Georgia | 144 | 68 |
| District of Columbia | 150 | 5 |
| Mississippi | 151 | 16 |
| Arkansas | 153 | 19 |
| Tennessee | 165 | 46 |
| Pennsylvania | 171 | 65 |
| Utah | 184 | 25 |
| South Carolina | 188 | 25 |
| Virginia | 192 | 43 |
| Indiana | 192 | 36 |
| Wisconsin | 195 | 28 |
| Louisiana | 212 | 20 |
| Alabama | 221 | 21 |
| Colorado | 223 | 28 |
| Oregon | 243 | 15 |
| Idaho | 244 | 9 |
| Minnesota | 271 | 20 |
| Oklahoma | 272 | 15 |
| West Virginia | 273 | 6 |
| Ohio | 289 | 38 |
| Missouri | 311 | 19 |
| Nebraska | 335 | 6 |
| Michigan | 340 | 26 |
| Iowa | 354 | 9 |
| Kansas | 361 | 9 |
| Kentucky | 383 | 11 |
| U.S. territories | ||
| Puerto Rico | 20 | 57 |