Layla: meaning and UK use

What does Layla mean?

Layla is an Arabic name meaning night. Laila, Leila and Leyla are related transliterations, and their pronunciation may vary.

Language or name family covered

Arabic

Meaning or derivation

Night

Our browsing group

girl; international, classic

Browsing groups describe our editorial shortlist, not rules about who may use a name. A name can cross languages and genders.

Sources for this entry — reviewed 2026-10-07:

• Behind the Name — Layla

Pronunciation and related forms

LAY-luh (English)

English respellings are approximate; IPA is labelled where used. Follow the pronunciation a person or family chooses, and check it with a speaker of the intended language if that connection matters to you.

Related forms recorded in the reference: Laila, Leila, Leyla. These may be full forms, diminutives or forms in another language; they are not necessarily pronounced alike or counted together in statistics.

How popular is Layla?

In 2025, 833 baby girls in England and Wales were registered as Layla, making it the 50th most popular girls’ name. That is up 6 places on 2024, when it ranked 56th. It has slipped from 35th in 2015, 15 places in ten years. Its best year in the ONS series was 2012, at 29th. These figures cover England and Wales, not the whole UK.

2025 rank (girls)

50th

2025 registrations

833

Best rank in this series

29th (2012)

Every year from 1996 to 2025

Layla: rank and number of baby girls by year (ONS)

Year	Rank	Babies
2025	50	833
2024	56	760
2023	53	826
2022	56	818
2021	53	917
2020	51	939
2019	48	1,025
2018	44	1,152
2017	38	1,329
2016	40	1,358
2015	35	1,428
2014	38	1,391
2013	31	1,588
2012	29	1,796
2011	30	1,780
2010	44	1,419
2009	48	1,274
2008	68	978
2007	82	715
2006	90	599
2005	97	530
2004	140	372
2003	140	352
2002	179	241
2001	214	186
2000	241	166
1999	237	172
1998	292	126
1997	263	145
1996	270	138

The sum of published counts in this 1996–2025 girls series is 25,353. This is a lower bound where years are suppressed, not the number of living people with the name. A best rank is the best position within this series; it does not establish an all-time record.

Selected hyphenated registrations starting with Layla in 2025: Layla-Mae: 20 (girls); Layla-Rose: 20 (girls). This selection includes up to four matching forms with at least ten registrations, not every compound name.

Sources: ONS release, 2025; girls' dataset; boys' dataset. Our 20 top-ten positions were checked against Table 1 in the 2025 workbooks. The history chart and spelling comparisons come from the separate ONS 1996–2025 workbook, checked 7 October 2026. Spelling variants are separate entries. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate statistics.

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Names to compare with Layla

These suggestions share a browsing group and one or more of our style tags or source-context labels. They are taste comparisons, not etymological relatives or a popularity ranking.

• Aishainternational, classic · Living or alive
• Isabellaclassic, international · A form of Isabel
• Niamhinternational, classic · Bright
• Sofiainternational, classic · A form of Sophia
• Amarainternational · Grace
• Ameliaclassic · A variant of Amalia

Read the UK naming guide for the difference between inspiration lists and official statistics, or return to the full name finder.

Registering or changing the name

Once you decide on Layla, confirm the registration process for your UK nation with the register office. If you later want to change a registered name, the route depends on the circumstances and may require consent from people with parental responsibility.

Start with GOV.UK birth registration or GOV.UK guidance on changing a child’s name. Our registration guide and child name-change guide explain where to find the relevant official process.