Malaika
Feminine · “angel”
Malaika is angels in Swahili — the plural of malak, borrowed from Arabic — and the Arabic root means messenger.
How old is the name Malaika?
Malaika first appears in US birth records in 1968 — 57 years ago. The typical Malaika alive today was born around 2005, making them about 20 years old. About 2,600 people named Malaika are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Malaika most popular?
Malaika peaked in 1972, reaching #1380 nationally. Today it ranks #2326, 946 places below that high. See the whole 1972 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From malak to Malaika
The story of Malaika
Malak in Hebrew and Arabic alike means a messenger — the theological angel grew from the ordinary job. Swahili took the Arabic plural as its singular, which is common in loanwords. The song Malaika is among the best-known in East Africa. The name appears in American records in current use.
Meaning
angel
From the Swahili malaika, 'angel', borrowed from the Arabic mala'ika, the plural of malak, 'messenger' or 'angel'. The Hebrew malakh is the same word and also means simply a messenger. The borrowing is documented.
How the name formed
- malak
- mala'ika
- Malaika
Related forms: Malaika · ملائكة · Malaika
Pronouncing Malaika
mah-LY-kah
Three syllables, stress in the middle. Swahili gives every vowel a full value.
Nicknames for Malaika
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
- 1968
- Most girls named
- 200686 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1380reached in 1972
- Change vs 2024
- −9.3%78 in 2025, from 86
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.
Malaika in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Malaika in Swahili — same name
- ملائكة in Arabic — related form
- Malaika in Hindi — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, Florida, Texas.
Malaikas among us
people named Malaika are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 20,606 born in 2025 was named Malaika
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 Jon test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Malaika's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Jon climbed just as high around 1944, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Jon's path sketches the road Malaika is walking now.
Malaika 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
Where Malaika is headed
Malaika should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Malaika beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Malaika in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That an angel began as an ordinary messenger is a first-rate etymology.
- The angel meaning is transparent and warm.
- Three syllables of open vowels, which carries unusually well.
- Swahili uses an Arabic plural as its singular, which purists notice.
- It reads as specifically East African or South Asian.
- It will need spelling out every time.
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What they receive
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Malaika
Feminine · #2326 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Malaikas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,600 people named Malaika are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Malaika in 2025?
- Malaika ranks #2326 among US girl names in 2025, with 78 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Malaika?
- About 1 in every 20,606 US girls born in 2025 was named Malaika — 78 in all.
- Will my child share the name Malaika with classmates?
- Malaika will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Malaika
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Ria#2326 · Sitara#2326 · Delta#2326 · Caitlin#2326 · Tommie#2326 · Azalia#2326 · Audrina#2326 · Aris#2326
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Malaika? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Malaika and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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