Leia
Leia is a girls' name of Hebrew origin meaning “weary; also associated with meadow or child of heaven.” It ranked #297 in the United States in 2025. A variant of Leah with independent roots, this name surged in popularity following the Star Wars franchise, where…
how do you pronounce Leia?
LAY-uh
Hear it spoken aloud with our AI pronunciation tool.
what does Leia mean?
The name Leia means “weary; also associated with meadow or child of heaven.” It comes from the Hebrew language tradition.
A variant of Leah with independent roots, this name surged in popularity following the Star Wars franchise, where Princess Leia Organa became one of cinema's most iconic heroines.
where does the name Leia come from?
Wikipedia describes Leia as a variant of the Hebrew Leah, given a meaning of 'languid' in several languages including Koine Greek and Portuguese, close to the 'weary' gloss given elsewhere, though the 'meadow' or 'child of heaven' senses sometimes cited aren't confirmed by anything found here.
the history of Leia
Both sources tie the name's modern visibility to Princess Leia Organa, who first appeared in Star Wars: A New Hope (1977); Wikipedia adds that the character's name was chosen by George Lucas for its phonetic similarity to Dejah Thoris (from Edgar Rice Burroughs' Martian novels) and to Galadriel (from J. R. R. Tolkien), since Lucas wanted names that were unusual but not too outlandish.
how popular is this name?
| Year | Rank |
|---|---|
| 2025 | #297 |
| 2024 | #289 |
| 2023 | #211 |
| 2022 | #257 |
| 2021 | #296 |
| 2020 | #296 |
Source: SSA National Baby Names Dataset
what are the nicknames and variants of Leia?
Variants around the world
who are famous people named Leia?
- Princess Leia Organa (Star Wars character)
- Carrie Fisher (actress who portrayed Leia)
what names are similar to Leia?
what names go well with Leia?
Sibling names that share Leia's rhythm and register without echoing it too closely.
Last reviewed April 30, 2026 · Curated by HushName editorial
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