Maliah is a spelling variant of Malia, the Hawaiian form of Mary, whose meaning is uncertain and usually explained as "beloved" or "bitter". The name took off in the United States when Malia Obama moved into the White House in 2009, and the -iah spelling followed the same curve. Maliah entered the top 1000 in 2009, peaked at number 786 in 2013 and has fallen back to number 1688 in 2025.