Lama
Feminine · “Arabic: a darkness of the lips”
Lama is a classical Arabic beauty term that English cannot translate in one word. It refers to a darkness of the lips and gums, considered attractive in classical Arabic poetry — a very specific aesthetic judgment, described in the poetry of the pre-Islamic period and preserved in the name long after the fashion it described.
How old is the name Lama?
Lama first appears in US birth records in 1978 — 47 years ago. The typical Lama alive today was born around 2006, making them about 19 years old. About 500 people named Lama are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Lama most popular?
Lama peaked in 1994, reaching #5445 nationally. Today it ranks #7133, 1,688 places below that high. See the whole 1994 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From لمى (Lamā) to Lama
The story of Lama
Classical Arabic has a large vocabulary for describing physical beauty in precise terms, much of it developed in pre-Islamic and early Islamic poetry, and a number of women's names come directly from it — Lama, Ghada for a graceful gait, Hind, Rasha for a young gazelle. These are not abstract virtue names; they name specific observed qualities, and Arabic speakers hear them as such. Lama is common across the Levant and the Gulf. Its American figures, peaking in 1994, are small and reflect Arab immigration rather than any broader use.
Meaning
Arabic: a darkness of the lips, considered a mark of beauty
From the Arabic root l-m-y, and the noun lamā, describing a brownish darkness of the inner lip regarded as beautiful in classical Arabic aesthetics. The reading is settled in Arabic lexicography. It is unrelated to the Tibetan title lama, to the South American animal, and to any European word — those resemblances are pure coincidence of spelling.
How the name formed
- لمىLamā
- Lama
Related forms: لمى · Lamaa
Pronouncing Lama
LAH-mah
Two syllables, stress on the first, both vowels open and full. It is said exactly as the Tibetan title and the animal are said in English, which is the practical difficulty rather than a phonetic one.
Nicknames for Lama
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1978
- Most girls named
- 201919 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #5445reached in 1994
- Change vs 2024
- +50.0%15 in 2025, from 10
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Lama in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- لمى in Arabic — same name
- Lamaa in Arabic (transliteration) — transliteration
Lamas among us
people named Lama are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 107,151 born in 2025 was named Lama
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Perrin test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Lama's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Perrin climbed just as high around 1969, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Perrin's path sketches the road Lama is walking now.
Lama sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Lama beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Lama in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is settled and comes from a genuine classical poetic vocabulary.
- Four letters and two open syllables make it effortless in any language.
- It is entirely ordinary across the Arab world.
- In English the word means a Tibetan teacher or a South American animal.
- The Arabic meaning is difficult to explain briefly to English speakers.
- It is very rare in America and carries no shared reference.
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What they receive
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Lama
Feminine · #7133 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Lamas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Lama are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Lama in 2025?
- Lama ranks #7133 among US girl names in 2025, with 15 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Lama?
- About 1 in every 107,151 US girls born in 2025 was named Lama — 15 in all.
- Will my child share the name Lama with classmates?
- Lama will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Lama
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Pennie#7133 · Zina#7133 · Elzie#7133 · Rosabel#7133 · Adelene#7133 · Cruz#7133 · Kansas#7133 · Ione#7133
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Lama? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Lama and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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