It can also mean 'small' in Croatian but used for a female gender. Also guys just call girls like that and NOT in a good way. It's not a really nice way to call a lady. But not all usage of it is gross like that. Just wanted to share that.
― Anonymous User 8/12/2021
1
Mala can be short for Amala/Amalia, as in the case of Mala Spiegelman, the second wife of Vladek (Władek) Spiegelman.
Cosmetics company founder Helena Rubinstein's Polish-born New York-based niece Mala Kolin (1905-99; used Helena's surname Rubinstein as her own professional surname) was a famous beauty expert and executive in her aunt's company. The "Mala Rubinstein" rose hybrid was named after her.
If you ignore the fact that this also means "bad" in Spanish, it's a really pretty name! It's simple, but pretty, and it rolls off the tongue quite naturally. It is a genuinely lovely name!