Maelani is a modern American name that joins Mae with the Hawaiian element lani, meaning "heavens" or "sky", and is often read as "heavenly flower" by analogy with Leilani. It belongs to the group of Hawaiian-inspired names that grew quickly in the late 2010s. Maelani was almost unused in 2000 and has risen every year since 2016, reaching number 1553 among US girls' names in 2025, its best rank so far.