How to say it
LEI · la
ˈleɪ.lə
Feminine
Leila
Night
What it means
Arabic and Persian for 'night,' laylā. The name at the center of the classical Layla and Majnun romance.
Leila is the Arabic and Persian word for night, laylā, made famous by the 7th-century love story Layla and Majnun, the Middle East's Romeo and Juliet. Byron borrowed it for English Romantic poetry, and Eric Clapton's 1970 'Layla' burned it into Western pop. Both pronunciations run loose in the wild, LAY-luh and LEE-luh. It shares its night-and-romance air with Layla, Laila, and Leyla, which are the same name in different dress.
How to spell Leila
The standard spelling is Leila. Common variants include Layla, Laila, Leyla, Lyla, but Leila is the most widely used form.
Popularity over time
peaked at #165 in 1880, currently #259 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–2025. Reviewed July 2026. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Pronunciation
Both LAY-luh and LEE-luh are used and defensible; say which you mean early.
- Spelling
Layla, Laila, and Leyla are the same name; Layla is currently the most common US spelling.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Layla and Majnun classical Persian-Arabic romance, the source of the name's fame
- Layla Derek and the Dominos / Eric Clapton song, 1970
Spelling variants
- Layla
- Laila
- Leyla
- Lyla
Names with the same feeling
See Leila from another angle
By meaning
Common questions
- What does the name Leila mean?
- Arabic and Persian for 'night,' laylā. The name at the center of the classical Layla and Majnun romance.
- What does Leila mean in Arabic?
- In Arabic, Leila means "Night." Leila is the Arabic and Persian word for night, laylā, made famous by the 7th-century love story Layla and Majnun, the Middle East's Romeo and Juliet. Byron borrowed it for English Romantic poetry, and Eric Clapton's 1970 'Layla' burned it into Western pop. Both pronunciations run loose in the wild, LAY-luh and LEE-luh. It shares its night-and-romance air with Layla, Laila, and Leyla, which are the same name in different dress.
- How do you pronounce Leila?
- Leila is pronounced ˈleɪ.lə. Say it as LEI-la, with the stress on the "lei" syllable.
- How do you spell Leila?
- The standard spelling is Leila. Common spelling variants include Layla, Laila, Leyla, Lyla.
- Is Leila a boy or girl name?
- Leila is traditionally a feminine name.
- How popular is the name Leila?
- Leila ranked #259 in the U.S. in 2025, according to Social Security Administration data.