Maryama
Feminine
Maryama is a Somali and East African form of Maryam, which is the Arabic form of Miryam, which is the Hebrew name behind every Mary in the world. It is one of the oldest continuously used women's names on earth. Its American record is recent and follows Somali resettlement, peaking in 2019.
How old is the name Maryama?
Maryama first appears in US birth records in 1994 — 31 years ago. The typical Maryama is a kid of about 9 — this name's wave is very recent. About 600 people named Maryama are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Maryama most popular?
Maryama peaked in 2019, reaching #3451 nationally. Today it ranks #5917, 2,466 places below that high. See the whole 2019 chart.
Where it comes from
From Miryam to Maryama
The story of Maryama
Miryam is the sister of Moses and Aaron, and the name passed into Greek as Mariam and Maria, into Latin as Maria, and into Arabic as Maryam, which is the form used in the Quran for the mother of Jesus — the only woman named in it. From Arabic it spread across the Muslim world, and East Africa produced its own forms: Maryama, Mariama and Maryan are all standard in Somalia, and Mariama is common across West Africa. American records show these forms rising from the 1990s with Somali, Gambian and Senegalese resettlement, and the 2019 peak reflects the growth of those communities rather than any English-language fashion.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The name is ancient and its meaning has never been established. Hebrew Miryam has been read as 'bitter', from mar; as 'beloved', from an Egyptian root mry; as 'drop of the sea', from a medieval Latin misreading; and as 'rebellion'. The Egyptian derivation is currently the most favored, since the name appears in a period of heavy Egyptian influence and several Israelite names of the era are Egyptian. None of the readings is demonstrated.
How the name formed
- Miryam
- Maryam
- Maryama
Related forms: Maryan · Maryam · Mariama · Mary
Pronouncing Maryama
mah-ree-AH-mah
Four syllables, stress on the third, with open vowels throughout. English speakers reduce the middle vowels and often produce mar-ee-AH-muh, which is understood everywhere.
Nicknames for Maryama
High
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
- 1994
- Most girls named
- 201945 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #3451reached in 2019
- Change vs 2024
- −13.0%20 in 2025, from 23
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.
Maryama in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Maryan in Somali — related form
- Maryam in Arabic — related form
- Mariama in Wolof — related form
- Mary in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Minnesota, Ohio, Washington.
Maryamas among us
people named Maryama are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 80,363 born in 2025 was named Maryama
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Maryama
- #5917
- Maryama on the 2025 chart
- #864
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Maryama went to 20 girls in 2025, but Mariama is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 96, which makes it the 864th most-given girls’ name of the year — 5,053 places above the chart.
- Mariama76
- Maryama20
About 1 girl in 16,742 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 80,363 for Maryama itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Denis test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Maryama's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Denis climbed just as high around 1938, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Denis's path sketches the road Maryama is walking now.
Maryama 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
Maryama beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Maryama in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- It descends from one of the most widely borne names in human history.
- Mary is available as an exact equivalent in English-speaking settings.
- The spelling is phonetic and stable across Somali and Arabic transliteration.
- Maryama, Mariama and Maryan are all in use and look like errors for each other.
- Four syllables is long for everyday American use.
- The original name's meaning has never been established, so there is no short answer.
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What they receive
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Maryama
Feminine · #5917 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Maryamas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 600 people named Maryama are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Maryama?
- Maryama is one of 2 recorded spellings. Mariama is the more common one — 76 births in 2025 against 20 for Maryama.
- How popular is the name Maryama in 2025?
- Maryama ranks #5917 among US girl names in 2025, with 20 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Maryama?
- About 1 in every 80,363 US girls born in 2025 was named Maryama — 20 in all.
- Will my child share the name Maryama with classmates?
- Maryama will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Maryama
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Elda#5917 · Saloma#5917 · Fawn#5917 · Sarafina#5917 · Jaymie#5917 · Jania#5917 · Kimberlynn#5917 · Patsy#5917
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Maryama? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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