[2] Its use for girls in England began during the British rule in India during the 19th century.

It has had an exotic image in the Anglosphere and also is similar in sound to other fashionable names such as Olivia and Sophia.

[3] In more recent years, some critics have viewed use of the name for non-Indian girls as problematic because they say it evokes the British Raj and colonialism.

In the United States it ranked among the top 1,000 names for girls at different points between 1880 and 1911.

It declined in use for American girls in 2023 and was no longer ranked among the top 1,000 names.