Leila

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Leila

Gender: Feminine
Language: English, Arabic
Etymology:
Leila is a name of Persian or Arabic origin meaning “Dark-Haired,” or “Night Visitor.”

History:
Leila belongs to the character of an old Eastern tale. Called “Leila and Majnun” it is tale of star-crossed lovers, much like Romeo and Juliet.

Leila became a literary name of the 19th century, found in Lord Byron’s 1813 work The Giaour (where it belongs to a “Turkish slave” who loves an outsider) his 1819-1824 work Don Juan (where it belongs to an orphaned girl), and in Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s 1838 novel Leila, or The Siege of Granada (a tale set in Spain). By the end of the 19th century it had become quite common.

Pronunciation: lye-lah, lay-lah

Alternates: Laila, Layla, Lila, Leela, Lelia, Lelah.

Famous Bearers:
Singers and Entertainers:
Marie Dressler (Leila Mariee Koerber) (1869-1934)
Canadian-American actress.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.029 % named Lila
0.015 % named Leila
0.002 % named Layla
0.001 % named Lelah

Popularity of Leila:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1850: N/A
1875: 406th most popular.
1900-1910: 284th most popular.
1910-1920: 334th most popular.
1920-1930: 377th most popular.
1930-1940: 387th most popular.
1940-1950: 626th most popular.
1950-1960: 686th most popular.
1960-1970: 775th most popular.
1970-1980: 796th most popular.
1980-1990: 819th most popular.
1990: 964th most popular.
1991: 966th most popular.
1992: 931st most popular.
1993: 925th most popular.
1994: 982nd most popular.
1995: 877th most popular.
1996: N/A
1997: 891st most popular.
1998: 735th most popular.
1999: 740th most popular.
2000: 596th most popular.
2001: 488th most popular.
2002: 453rd most popular.
2003: 348th most popular.