With its literal meaning "living", it is considered to be a feminine couterpart of the Hebrew masculine given name Haim.
It has a number of other transliterations: Chaja, Haya, Khaya, Haia.
Approximately before 1920s, for Ashkenazi Jews in Europe it was customary to record legal names of females in diminutive form.
[1] In the case of Chaya these were Chayka (Hebrew: חייקה), Chaika, Chajka, Khaika, Khayka, etc.
Notable people with the given name include: