Illya
A Ukrainian form of a Hebrew name that reads "my god is Yahweh". It only starts appearing on Polish rolls in the 2020s, given to a handful of boys and no girls, so most Poles have never met one.
Illya Pronunciation
Illya is pronounced eel-LIH-ah (/ilˈlɨa/).
What Illya means
Where Illya comes from and what it has meant to the people who carry it.
Illya begins in Hebrew, as Eliyahu, a name built like a small sentence: my God is Yahweh. The prophet who bore it stood against the priests of Baal, and his name argued a case every time someone said it. Over centuries that sentence moved east and settled into Ukrainian speech as Illya, the everyday form of the same declaration.
In Ukraine the name belongs to Saint Elijah, whose feast falls on the second of August. Farmers once watched the sky that day and said the thunderstorms overhead were his chariot passing. Boys called Illya carried the name of the prophet of fire and rain.
The meaning stays close to the surface. My God is Yahweh states a claim, phrased as a fact. Wherever the name lands on a Polish class register, its Hebrew grammar is still intact, three Hebrew words folded into two soft syllables.
How many people are named Illya
1 in 38323 men in Poland is named Illya. 560 people carry it in the 2025 register: rank #1260 among male names.
Illya's popularity over time
4 boys were given the name in 2025, ranking #1059 among newborns. It has been climbing since 2021.
Where Illya is most popular
Illya is most popular in Lower Silesian, 391% above the national average (5 boys born 2019–2025), followed by Kuyavian-Pomeranian (+323%) and Greater Poland (+187%). It is least common in Masovian, 13% below average.
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Lower Silesian5 boys born+391%
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Kuyavian-Pomeranian3 boys born+323%
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Greater Poland4 boys born+187%
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Masovian2 boys born−13%