Aya is a short name with several roots: in Arabic it means "sign" or "miracle" and is the word for a verse of the Quran, in Japanese it is written with characters for color or design, and in Hebrew it is the name of a bird. That mix makes it a name that works in many communities. In the United States Aya was number 893 in 2015, has been in the top 1000 since 2014 and ranks 644 in 2025 after a peak of 630 the year before.