Given name & surname
Malika
“destined to be queen”
Malika is used as a given name and a surname. One Arabic interpretation is “destined to be queen.”
Original Arabicمَلِكَة
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Arabic interpretation is “destined to be queen.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1966. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Malika through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 5,003
- 36 boys · 4,967 girls
- Most popular year
- 1996
- 183 babies
- 2025
- 64
- #2,711 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −13%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 64 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 2,711 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 13.1% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 183 in 1996. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (8). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,656 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Malika’s family of names
In English usage, Malika shares a linguistic root with Melika. Malika has a related form in Malikah. In English usage, Malika has a conventional equivalent in the Turkish form MELIKE.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Malika has relatives in 8 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.
Arabicwhere Malika comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 8
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 4
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 6
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Malika
- Malek Jahan KhanomRegent of Persia, Qajar queen mother and princess (1805-1873)
- Malika OufkirMoroccan Amazigh (Berber) writer and former "disappeared"born 1953
- Malika PukhrajPakistani singer1912–2004
- Malika AyaneItalian singer-songwriter and actressborn 1984
- Aylín MújicaCuban actress singerborn 1974
- Malika MokeddemAlgerian writerborn 1949
- Malika AkkaouiMoroccan distance runnerborn 1987
- Malika DomraneAlgerian singerborn 1956
- Malika MénardMiss France 2010, Top 15 at Miss Universe 2010born 1987
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Malika, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Khadijah
“a perfect woman” · “a child born prematurely”
>99% girls
Katelyn
“one who is pure; virginal”
>99% girls
Nadira
“one who is precious; rare”
>99% girls
Maissa
Maissa is a feminine given name from Arabic. It is used in French.
>99% girls
Kaitlyn
“one who is pure; virginal”
>99% girls
Qadira
“powerful; capable” · “a capable man; one who is competent”
>99% girls
Princessa
“a highborn daughter; born to royalty”
>99% girls
Minah
“woman from the South” · “one who is greatly loved”
>99% girls