Alaa
Ala or Alaa is an Arabic masculine given name meaning "elevation, exaltedness, highness, loftiness, sublimity" or "honor and glory, might, power, dignity" or "prestige, greatness, noble, high in rank" or "eminence, glorious, grandeur" or "high in position and status". The name is also used as a feminine given name.
- Arabic
Meaning & Origin of Alaa
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Ala or Alaa is an Arabic masculine given name meaning "elevation, exaltedness, highness, loftiness, sublimity" or "honor and glory, might, power, dignity" or "prestige, greatness, noble, high in rank" or "eminence, glorious, grandeur" or "high in position and status". The name is also used as a feminine given name.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- Arabic
The Story of Alaa
As a girl name
Alaa first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a girl name in 1981, with 11 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2017: 61 births, good for #2,779 nationwide. About 32% of every Alaa on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Alaa ranks #2,974 for girls with 55 births, holding steady (-3%). All told, over 2K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1980s to the 2020s.
As a boy name
The earliest SSA record of Alaa as a boy name dates back to 1979, when 5 babies received it. 1994 was its biggest year on record, with 24 newborns named Alaa — #2,951 in the national rankings. About 33% of every Alaa on record arrived during the 1990s, its defining decade. Alaa last appeared in the published SSA data in 2024, with 8 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 458 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1970s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Alaa
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Alaa. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Alaa
Phonetically similar names — useful when Alaa is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Alaa
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About the name Alaa
Alaa is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1981 and has accumulated 2K births in the dataset. Alaa's peak popularity came in 2017 when it ranked #2,779. Use the chart and map above to compare Alaa's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2017 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "A" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
- Browse unisex names →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.