Girl's name
Lila
Say it LY-luh
Roots in Arabic and Sanskrit play, charm
2 syllables
Where Lila is loved, common and rare
Common in France. Rare in Poland, the UK, Canada and 11 more places.
1 in 486 girls born in Northern Ireland in 2025
France 88thPoland 102ndNorthern Ireland 132nd
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 19 of the 40 official lists, among them France (88th), Poland (102nd) and Northern Ireland (132nd).
Show all 19 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 88th 2025 | 560 | 1 in 512 |
| Poland | 102nd 2025 | 163 | 1 in 735 |
| Northern Ireland | 132nd 2025 | 15 | 1 in 486 |
| England and Wales | 179th 2025 | 277 | 1 in 914 |
| Quebec province | 191st 2025 | 30 | about 1 in 867 |
| Slovenia | 204th 2025 | 6 | about 1 in 1,102 |
| Scotland | 217th 2025 | 17 | 1 in 1,052 |
| Catalonia region | 235th 2025 | 16 | 1 in 1,204 |
| Ireland | 273rd 2025 | 15 | 1 in 1,408 |
| British Columbia province | 321st 2023 | 10 | about 1 in 1,196 |
| Switzerland | 322nd 2025 | 22 | 1 in 1,545 |
| Berlin city | 385th 2023 | 8 | about 1 in 1,813 |
| Ontario province | 391st 2024 | 33 | about 1 in 1,650 |
| Cologne city | 419th 2023 | 2 | about 1 in 3,072 |
| The Netherlands | 428th 2025 | 30 | about 1 in 2,034 |
| Austria | 858th 2025 | 4 | 1 in 8,930 |
| Sweden | 885th 2025 | 5 | about 1 in 8,034 |
| Italy | 2199th 2024 | 3 | 1 in 59,723 |
| Leipzig city | 344th 2025 | 1 | about 1 in 2,624 |
Rare, below the listed names: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, New Zealand, Munich, Bonn, Rostock, Norway, Spain, Hungary and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); Statistični urad Republike Slovenije (SURS), SiStat (Slovenia); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); Idescat (Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya) (Catalonia); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Stadt Leipzig, Standesamt (opendata.leipzig.de) (Leipzig). How we count, and every source
About the name
Lila comes from the Sanskrit līlā, meaning 'play, charm'. It is also listed as an Arabic name, so it sits at the meeting point of more than one tradition.
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Two syllables, said LY-luh, with the stress on the first. Lili and Lily are close in sound, and Lilah, Leila, Leela, Lilia and Lilja are related or similar names.
It is climbing in a dozen regions and falling in only two. France ranks it among the top 90, and it is also used in Poland and Slovenia. In English-speaking countries it appears in Northern Ireland, England and Wales, and Quebec. French records show it in use for generations but reaching its peak only in 2021, so it is a long-standing name having its most popular period now.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- LY-luh, 2 syllables
- Meaning
play, charm
- Origin
- Arabic and Sanskrit
Etymology
From Sanskrit लीला (līlā, “play, charm”).
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 12 of 16 regions, falling in 2.
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Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 287 | 320 | 292 | 325 | 256 | 237 | 242 | 257 | 237 | 179 |
| Scotland | 356 | 570 | 301 | 406 | 313 | 339 | 285 | 365 | 244 | 217 |
| Northern Ireland | 202 | 215 | 238 | 200 | 246 | 237 | 201 | 209 | 132 | |
| Ireland | 419 | 316 | 361 | 296 | 410 | 299 | 338 | 364 | 342 | 273 |
| Ontario | 203 | 211 | 202 | 245 | 259 | 292 | 234 | 304 | 391 | |
| British Columbia | 146 | 196 | 179 | 246 | 248 | 250 | 381 | 321 | ||
| South Australia | 124 | 109 | ||||||||
| Quebec | 382 | 319 | 388 | 278 | 322 | 360 | 261 | 260 | 412 | 191 |
| France | 106 | 92 | 88 | 81 | 74 | 70 | 71 | 75 | 80 | 88 |
| The Netherlands | 879 | 837 | 667 | 563 | 586 | 504 | 421 | 682 | 428 | |
| Austria | 549 | 756 | 601 | 754 | 580 | 1034 | 497 | 825 | 678 | 858 |
| Switzerland | 406 | 282 | 275 | 385 | 429 | 408 | 287 | 254 | 438 | 322 |
| Berlin | 498 | 985 | 657 | 496 | 558 | 361 | 368 | 385 | ||
| Sweden | 789 | 925 | 885 | |||||||
| Catalonia | 238 | 327 | 280 | 189 | 222 | 218 | 244 | 156 | 251 | 235 |
| Italy | 1368 | 1856 | 2199 | |||||||
| Poland | 125 | 122 | 119 | 113 | 106 | 99 | 105 | 97 | 98 | 102 |
| Slovenia | 227 | 130 | 170 | 179 | 204 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 179 | 277 | 109.4 |
| 2024 | 237 | 204 | 79.1 |
| 2023 | 257 | 178 | 69.4 |
| 2022 | 242 | 196 | 74.4 |
| 2021 | 237 | 211 | 77.0 |
| 2020 | 256 | 184 | 68.6 |
| 2019 | 325 | 144 | 51.4 |
| 2018 | 292 | 162 | 56.2 |
| 2017 | 320 | 150 | 50.2 |
| 2016 | 287 | 175 | 57.0 |
| 2015 | 234 | 214 | 69.5 |
| 2014 | 252 | 194 | 63.3 |
| 2013 | 290 | 161 | 52.2 |
| 2012 | 265 | 188 | 58.4 |
| 2011 | 312 | 157 | 48.9 |
| 2010 | 267 | 185 | 57.6 |
| 2009 | 283 | 168 | 53.6 |
| 2008 | 287 | 166 | 52.6 |
| 2007 | 343 | 127 | 41.5 |
| 2006 | 328 | 132 | 44.1 |
| 2005 | 354 | 113 | 39.2 |
| 2004 | 453 | 77 | 26.9 |
| 2003 | 494 | 65 | 23.3 |
| 2002 | 1658 | 11 | 4.1 |
| 2001 | 1170 | 17 | 6.3 |
| 2000 | 1475 | 12 | 4.4 |
| 1999 | 1557 | 11 | 3.9 |
| 1998 | 1823 | 9 | 3.1 |
| 1997 | 2738 | 5 | 1.7 |
| 1996 | 1222 | 15 | 5.1 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
France since 1925
Half of the babies named Lila in France since 1925 were born in or after 2012. First recorded in 1937. Her peak year there: 2021, at 244.6 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Lila per 100,000 girls born in France, by five-year period. Her 2021 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (1900-2025), Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0.
Sister names for Lila
1 in 919 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 607 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 813 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 1,509 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 271 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 649 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Lila.
1 in 560 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Lila. Same first letter as Lila.
1 in 1,988 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Lila. Same first letter as Lila.
Middle names for Lila
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Lila Grace
2-1 beats · initials LG
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Lila Olivia
2-4 beats · initials LO · Lila slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Lila slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Lila Sophia
2-3 beats · initials LS
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Lila Maria
2-3 beats · initials LM
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Lila Rose
2-1 beats · initials LR
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Lila Emily
2-3 beats · initials LE · Lila slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Lila slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Lila Julia
2-3 beats · initials LJ
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Lila Miriam
2-3 beats · initials LM
Changes the beat after Lila: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Lila
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 1,193 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 813 in Ireland
93% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 852 in Scotland
92% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 649 in England and Wales
92% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 334 in England and Wales
92% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 260 in Northern Ireland
92% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 754 in Ireland
91% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
1 in 607 in Northern Ireland
91% alike: moves with Lila across countries and decades.
Famous people named Lila
Lila Downs, Lila Tretikov, Lila Kedrova, Lila Lee and Lila Abu-Lughod.
Show all 5Show less
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Mexican-American singer-songwriter born 1968
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Russian–American engineer, manager and former executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation born 1978
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Actress (1909–2000)
-
Prominent screen actress of the silent film era (1901-1973)
-
Palestinian-American anthropologist born 1952
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Lila
5 questions, on how popular she is, what it means, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
Show all 5 questionsShow less
How popular is Lila?
Her best rank is No. 88 in France in 2025, about 1 in 512 girls. She is in the published lists of 19 of our 40 regions.
What does Lila mean?
Wiktionary glosses Lila as "play, charm".
How do you pronounce Lila?
LY-luh, with 2 syllables.
Is Lila getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 12 of 16 regions, falling in 2.
Which sister names go with Lila?
The deck's top five sisters for Lila: Tessa, Selena, Serena, Norah and Mae. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.