Mariama is the West African form of Maryam, the name of Mary, used by Fula, Mandinka and Wolof speakers in Senegal, the Gambia, Guinea and Sierra Leone; the Hebrew source Miryam is of debated meaning and usually read as "beloved" or "wished-for child". The Senegalese novelist Mariama Ba is a celebrated bearer. In the United States Mariama has stayed between number 2300 and 3300 since 2000 and ranks number 2375 in 2025.