12/30/2020 CorrectionLilja is also a Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, and Estonian given name. A Norwegian and Danish variant of this name, Lilje, exists. The Swedish and Finnish surname Lilja, derived from the given name Lilja, exists. The name day for Lilja in Estonia is May 20.Sources: https://www.names.org/n/lilja/about https://forebears.io/x/forenames/lilja
I really like the name, considering that is my name. But I shall admit, when I was in primary and when they called out the roll and they always pronounced it 'lil-ja' which is incorrect so I had to correct them a lot. Once when I was 5 I told this woman how my name was spelled and she didn't believe me and wrote 'Lilya' on my bag; now when I remember it I can't help but laugh because that is how it's pronounced so I should have thanked her. Overall, a good and beautiful name, but it can be... Annoying at times.
I was introduced to this name by a Swedish film that was released in 2002 titled "Lilja 4-ever" written and directed by Lukas Moodysson, starring Oksana Akinshina as 'Lilja'. A well-done, but heartwrenching film about a 16-year-old Russian [or possibly Estonian] girl who ends up in Sweden for the worse.