BabyNameScore

Leilani

lay·LAH·nee · 3 syllables

Leilani is comfortably familiar.

91/100

Strong Practical Fit

Balanced across pronunciation, everyday use, lifetime fit and international use.

Name Profile

  1. Pronunciation & Spelling

    Clear, with one common misreading

    A documented English pronunciation is on file: lay-LAH-nee. Stress misplacement (e.g., LY-luh-nee instead of lay-LAH-nee).

    91/100

  2. Everyday Use

    Low risk

    Shortens naturally in everyday use, with two established short forms.

    95/100

  3. Growing Up

    Strong lifetime fit

    Works comfortably across child and adult settings.

    82/100

  4. International Use

    Broad international fit

    Works cleanly across the assessed languages and writing systems.

    85/100

NAME DETAILS

COMMON FORMS
Lani
Lei
CLOSE SPELLINGS
Leilanie
Lelani
Leilana
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORM
Leilani is itself the Hawaiian-language form; no separate translated-language equivalent was identified in research
ORIGIN & HISTORY

About the name

A living Hawaiian-language personal name built from lei and lani, in continuous use within Hawaii; it gained a lasting foothold in mainland US naming in 1937 after composer Harry Owens's song 'Sweet Leilani' — written the day after his own daughter Leilani's birth in October 1934 — became an Academy Award-winning hit through the film Waikiki Wedding and Bing Crosby's recording. The two Hawaiian root words (lei, lani) and their core dictionary senses are well documented in Hawaiian-language reference sources, but exactly which combined English gloss counts as 'the' translation varies: some sources render it literally as 'heavenly flowers/garland,' others foreground the figurative 'royal child' or 'heavenly child' sense built from lani's royal/exalted meaning and lei's figurative 'beloved child' sense. These are compatible readings of the same two morphemes rather than competing etymologies, but no single English phrase captures the name's full range on its own.

  1. Leilani (Hawaiian compound: lei + lani). 'Heavenly flowers' or 'heavenly garland,' with a figurative personal-name sense of 'royal child' or 'heavenly child' — combining lei (flower garland, or figuratively a cherished child) and lani (heaven/sky, or royal/exalted). Predates its mainland US popularization; the 1937 song is a milestone in the name's US popularity history, not the point of the name's origin, which is rooted in ongoing Native Hawaiian naming practice.
  2. Mythological and religious contextThe lani element connects to the broader traditional Hawaiian association between chiefly/aliʻi rank and the heavens, but 'Leilani' as a compound is not itself tied to a specific myth, deity, or sacred narrative in the sources consulted.
POPULARITY

Leilani over time

United States
#60RANK

Rank #60 gives national context, not a classroom forecast.

Recognizable without feeling automatic. Ranked #60 in the U.S., 2025.

SourceU.S. Social Security Administration · 2025 release

Pronunciation & Forms

SAY IT

lay·LAH·nee

STRESS ON THE SECOND SYLLABLE

COMMON FORMS
  • Lani
  • Lei
CLOSE SPELLINGS
  • Leilanie
  • Lelani
  • Leilana
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS
  • Leilani is itself the Hawaiian-language form; no separate translated-language equivalent was identified in research
PRACTICAL LIFE

How This Name Lives

AT SCHOOL & DAY TO DAY

Distinctive and melodic for a child; its multisyllabic length is sometimes shortened informally.

INTO ADULTHOOD

Carries well into adulthood, especially in and around Hawaii and Pacific Islander communities; elsewhere in the US it reads as memorable and specific rather than era-bound.

Cultural Footprint

Carries genuine Native Hawaiian cultural weight (lani especially connotes chiefly rank/the sacred in Hawaiian tradition) alongside a more generic mainland-US use as an appealing, Polynesian-sounding name; within Hawaii it has reportedly remained a top-10 girls' name for over a century per aggregator reporting.

TRACEABLE ORIGIN
  1. "Sweet Leilani"1937 Academy Award-winning song by Harry Owens
  2. Waikiki Wedding1937 film
  3. Raven Leilaniauthor

Community Impressions

Leilani specifically evokes Hawaii rather than a generic 'tropical' feeling — most American listeners who recognize the name at all know it either through genuine Hawaiian/Pacific Islander community use or through the 1937 Bing Crosby standard 'Sweet Leilani,' not through any unrelated name-alike association.

How this name is commonly received · not used in the score

More about Leilani

FORMALITY

Functions as a complete formal name; natural short forms like 'Lani' or 'Lei' are used informally.

Names around it

KailaniNalaniMalani
EDITORIAL SYNTHESIS

The Decision

Leilani is spelled without unusual letter patterns, and it holds up in everyday use. Surname-dependent compatibility remains unassessed until a surname is added.

STRENGTH

A documented English pronunciation is on file. Uses standard characters that systems widely handle cleanly.

BEST FIT

Everyday Use is the strongest-scoring part of this name — no obvious nickname traps, rhymes, or initial issues detected.

FULL-NAME CHECK

See how it works with a surname.

Leilani