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Japanese Miley is not in the Bible, and it is not really an old name at all. It is about forty years old, and it began as a joke between a father and his daughter.
Where the name Miley comes from
The name entered wide use through Miley Cyrus, who was born Destiny Hope Cyrus in 1992. She smiled constantly as a baby, so her father called her Smiley, which shortened to Miley. She took it legally as an adult.
Before that it existed only as a rare surname and an occasional variant of Miles or Millie. Almost every Miley alive today is named after that nickname.
So the meaning, as far as it has one, is “smiley.”
Is Miley in the Bible?
No. Neither the name nor anything it derives from appears in Scripture.
But the name she was given at birth is a different matter, and it is the more interesting question.
Destiny and Hope
Destiny is not a biblical idea. Scripture has providence, which is not the same thing: providence is a person attending to us, destiny is a mechanism running on rails. The Bible does not know a fate that grinds along without a face.
Hope it knows very well, and treats with unusual care. Paul defines it by what it is not: Hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? (Romans 8:24)
Which is a harder saying than it looks. Hope, in Scripture, is by definition about the part none of us can see yet. If we could see it we would not need the word.
A name made of gladness
It is worth saying plainly: “smiley” is not a trivial thing to be called.
A cheerful heart is good medicine. (Proverbs 17:22)
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4) — written, we should remember, from a prison cell.
The gladness Scripture commends is not the absence of trouble. Paul was in chains when he wrote that sentence, and he wrote it twice so nobody would think he had misspoken. Christian joy is stubborn rather than cheerful. It holds on in places where cheerfulness would have given up.
For anyone with a made-up name
There are more of us than there used to be. Names invented, borrowed from a screen, or shortened from something nobody says any more.
No name in Scripture is holy because of its spelling. Peter’s name was his second, and Jesus gave it to him. Paul went by two names his whole life, one Jewish and one Roman, and used whichever fitted the room.
A name given at birth, or chosen later, is no smaller a thing for being new. It is a word people say when they want someone.
A blessing for Miley
May the gladness the name was given for prove to be the durable kind.
May we hope for what we cannot see, which is the only hope worth the name.
And may we be glad to be called by whatever those who love us chose to call us.
Frequently asked
What does Miley mean?
Effectively “smiley.” Before the nickname it existed only as a rare surname and an occasional variant of Miles or Millie.
Where did the name come from?
Destiny Hope Cyrus smiled constantly as a baby and was called Smiley, which shortened to Miley. She took it legally as an adult, and almost every Miley alive is named after it.
Is Destiny a biblical idea?
No. Scripture has providence, which is a person attending to us rather than a mechanism running on rails. Hope it treats carefully: Romans 8:24 defines it as being about what cannot yet be seen.
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