Given name & surname
Miya
“from the sacred temple”
Miya is used as a given name and a surname. One Japanese interpretation is “from the sacred temple.”
Original Japaneseみや
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Japanese interpretation is “from the sacred temple.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Japanese.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1965. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Miya through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 8,071
- 0 boys · 8,071 girls
- Most popular year
- 2007
- 319 babies
- 2025
- 123
- #1,681 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −28%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 123 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 1,681 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 28.2% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 319 in 2007. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (15). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 6,486 as a first name in 2020; 370 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Miya’s family of names
Miya has a related form in Miyah. In Malayalam usage, Miya is a Roman-alphabet rendering of മിയ. In Japanese usage, Miya is a Roman-alphabet rendering of みや.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Miya
- Miya Tachibanasynchronized swimmerborn 1974
- Miya FolickAmerican singer-songwriterborn 1989
- Miya MasaokaAmerican composer (born 1958)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Miya, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Miyu
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Mayuko
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Miu
Miu is a feminine given name from Japanese. It is used in English and French.
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