Alaynah
A feminine variation of the Arabic name Alaina, meaning "high born".
Name Census estimates that about 1,053 living Americans carry the first name Alaynah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Alaynah today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Alaynah births was 2014 (77 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Alaynah. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Alaynah with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Alaynah is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 14 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 325,503 Americans
Peak year
2014
77 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,760
Tracked since 1990
Census
Alaynah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 693 people with the first name Alaynah, which placed it at #16,322 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#16,322
National first-name rank
People counted
693
693 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
41.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alaynah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Alaynah is White at 41.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.2%) and Black (19.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Alaynah described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Alaynah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White41.7% · 289
- Hispanic or Latino23.2% · 161
- Black or African American19.8% · 137
- Two or more races11.3% · 78
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 11
Popularity
Alaynah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Alaynah from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 568 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Alaynah by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Alaynah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Alaynahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Alaynah, while New York, Illinois, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 22 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Alaynah
The name Alaynah is a modern variation of the Arabic name Alaina, which means "the highest" or "the most exalted." The name has its roots in the Arabic language and culture, with its origins dating back to the 7th century AD when Arabic was widely spoken across the Middle East and North Africa.
While the name Alaynah itself is a relatively recent adaptation, it shares a similar linguistic lineage with names like Alaina, Alana, and Alayna. These names were commonly used among Arabic-speaking communities, particularly in regions where Islamic culture and traditions were prevalent.
In terms of historical references, the name Alaynah does not appear to have any direct mentions in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, its Arabic roots and association with concepts of exaltation and elevation align with the values and beliefs of Islamic teachings.
The earliest recorded examples of the name Alaynah are relatively recent, with the name gaining popularity in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. However, some notable individuals throughout history have borne variations of the name.
One such individual was Alaina Kalanj (1192-1264), a prominent Persian poet and scholar who lived during the Seljuk Empire. Her works were highly regarded, and she was celebrated for her contributions to Persian literature.
Another notable figure was Alana Khan (1542-1605), a Mughal princess and the daughter of Emperor Humayun. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her influence in the Mughal court.
In the realm of literature, Alaina Ferrante (1918-2005) was an Italian novelist and essayist renowned for her works exploring themes of identity, feminism, and social commentary.
Alayna Govender (1952-2018) was a South African activist and human rights advocate who played a crucial role in the anti-apartheid movement and the struggle for racial equality.
Lastly, Alaina Reed Hall (1946-2009) was an American actress and singer best known for her roles in TV shows like "227" and "Sesame Street," where she portrayed the beloved character Olivia.
These individuals, spanning different eras and cultural backgrounds, exemplify the diverse histories and narratives associated with the name Alaynah and its variations.
People
Alaynah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Alaynah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Alaynah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alaynah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,053 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Alaynah going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 325,503 US residents.
Is Alaynah a common name?
We classify Alaynah as "Rare". It ranks above 90.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,064 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Alaynah most popular?
The single biggest year for Alaynah was 2014, when 77 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Alaynah is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Alaynah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 693 people with the name Alaynah, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,322 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Alaynah in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Alaynah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Alaynah appears almost entirely female. Of the 697 people counted with this name, 99.4% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Alaynah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Alaynah is White at 41.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.2%) and Black (19.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Alaynah most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Alaynah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 41.7% (289 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Alaynah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Alaynah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Alaynah in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Alaynah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Alaynah in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Alaynah can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have the name Alaynah?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.