Amarilys
A feminine name of Spanish origin meaning "amaryllis flower".
Name Census estimates that about 313 living Americans carry the first name Amarilys. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Amarilys today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Amarilys births was 1989 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Amarilys. 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.
People living today
313
~ 1 in 1,095,062 Americans
Peak year
1989
17 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2014 SSA rank
#16,694
Tracked since 1971
Census
Amarilys in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,139 people with the first name Amarilys, which placed it at #11,329 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
#11,329
National first-name rank
People counted
1.1K
1,139 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
98.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Amarilys
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Amarilys is Hispanic at 98.4%. The next largest groups are White (1.1%) and Black (0.4%). 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 Amarilys 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 Amarilys at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino98.4% · 1,121
- White1.1% · 12
- Black or African American0.4% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 2
Popularity
Amarilys: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Amarilys from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 93 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Amarilys 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 Amarilys during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Amarilys' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Florida, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Amarilys, while New Jersey, Illinois, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Amarilys
Amarilys is a Spanish feminine name derived from the Spanish word "amarillo," meaning yellow. This name has its roots in the Latin word "amaryllis," which refers to a type of flowering plant native to South Africa. The amaryllis flower is known for its striking red or yellow blossoms.
The name Amarilys gained popularity in Spain and Latin American countries during the 19th century. It was often given to girls born with fair or golden hair, as the name was associated with the color yellow. The name's connection to the vibrant amaryllis flower also contributed to its appeal.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Amarilys can be found in the 1846 novel "La hija del mar" (The Daughter of the Sea) by Spanish writer José María Fernández Espino. In this work, the character Amarilys is a young woman who embodies the beauty and grace associated with her name.
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Amarilys. Amarilys Maceira Rodríguez (1923-1992) was a Cuban actress and singer known for her performances in Mexican cinema during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Amarilys Álvarez (born 1964) is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer who served as the Attorney General of Puerto Rico from 2009 to 2013.
Amarilys Sánchez (born 1974) is a Puerto Rican former professional basketball player who represented Puerto Rico in international competitions. Amarilys Gómez (born 1977) is a Venezuelan actress and model known for her roles in telenovelas and her work as a television host.
Another notable figure is Amarilys Rodriguez (born 1948), a Puerto Rican educator and activist who has dedicated her life to advocating for bilingual education and the rights of Hispanic communities in the United States.
While the name Amarilys is not as common today as it once was, it continues to be used in Spanish-speaking cultures, particularly in Latin America and Spain. The name's association with the vibrant amaryllis flower and its connection to the color yellow make it a unique and evocative choice for parents seeking a name with a rich historical and cultural heritage.
People
Amarilys + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Amarilys 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
Amarilys: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Amarilys?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 313 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Amarilys 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 1,095,062 US residents.
Is Amarilys a common name?
We classify Amarilys as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 327 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Amarilys most popular?
The single biggest year for Amarilys was 1989, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Amarilys is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Amarilys in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,139 people with the name Amarilys, or 0.38 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,329 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 Amarilys 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 Amarilys?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Amarilys appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,135 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Amarilys?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Amarilys is Hispanic at 98.4%. The next largest groups are White (1.1%) and Black (0.4%). 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 Amarilys most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Amarilys in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.4% (1,121 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 Amarilys in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Amarilys a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Amarilys 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 Amarilys still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Amarilys 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 Amarilys 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 are called Amarilys?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.