Soraya
Top 1000
About Soraya
Soraya is a Persian name made famous in the Western world by the one-time empress of Iran, who settled in Europe, primarily in France. Soraya is derived from Thurayya, the Arabic name of the Pleiades, a group of stars in the constellation Taurus.
Currently in the England and Wales Top 1000, the French Top 500, and the Italian Top 200, it has made several appearances on the US charts in the 2020s. It's easy to see it climbing however, in the wake of Raya, Seraphina, and Alaia.
Pronounced as so-ra-YAW in Persian, so-RA-ya in Spanish, suh-RYE-uh, so-RYE-uh, and suh-RAY-uh may also be heard.
Pronounced sor-AH-yuh.
As of October 2026, Soraya ranked #868 in US births in 2025 SSA, Nameberry popularity #579.
Editor's take: The name Soraya is a girl's name of Persian origin meaning "Pleiades constellation".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #1,318 | 180 | 100.8 |
| 2015 | #1,233 | 201 | 112.6 |
| 2016 | #1,240 | 197 | 111.2 |
| 2017 | #1,320 | 177 | 102.5 |
| 2018 | #1,247 | 187 | 109.9 |
| 2019 | #1,129 | 215 | 128.1 |
| 2020 | #1,185 | 196 | 121.2 |
| 2021 | #990 | 262 | 159.7 |
| 2022 | #1,054 | 242 | 147.5 |
| 2023 | #1,150 | 212 | 132.1 |
| 2024 | #913 | 290 | 179 |
| 2025 | #868 | 313 | 194.7 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Soraya.
- Solana
- Theia
- Enya
- Cyra
- Inara
- Yara
- Alya
- Xiomara
- Asha
- Keziah
- Astoria
- Aurelie
- Elysia
- Saanvi
- Naia
- Adora
- Chiara
- Oriana
- Aisling
- Priya
Soraya on lists
Famous Sorayas
- Soraya Esfandiary
Bakhtiari, Queen of Iran, wife of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi
- Soraya Tarzi
Queen consort of Afghanistan
- Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson
American radio journalist
- Hayley Soraya Tamaddon
English actress
- Soraya Arnelas Rubiales
Spanish singer
- Soraya Raquel Lamilla Cuevas
Colombian,American singer,songwriter
- Soraya Viola Heléna Post
Swedish MEP
- Soraya Haddad
Algerian Olympic judoka
- Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría (Antón)
deputy prime minister of Spain
- Soraya Saga
pen name of Kaori Tanaka, Japanese video game writer and illustrator
- Saraya
Jade Bevis, English professional wrestler and actress
Soraya in pop culture
- Soraya
lead character in Hilari Bell's "Farsala Trilogy"
- Soraya
minor character in telenovela "La Reina del Sur"
- Soraya Taheri
Amir's wife in "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hossini
- "The Stoning of Soraya M.
" 2008 Persian,language movie
- Soraya Duval
character in "Heartland"
- Soraya Montenegro
character in Maria la del Barrio