Arrayah
An Arabic name meaning "celestial, heavenly, or sky-like".
Name Census estimates that about 193 living Americans carry the first name Arrayah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Arrayah today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Arrayah births was 2008 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Arrayah. 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 Arrayah with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
193
~ 1 in 1,775,929 Americans
Peak year
2008
19 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,327
Tracked since 2007
Popularity
Arrayah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Arrayah from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 112 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Arrayah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Arrayah 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 Arrayah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Arrayah
The name Arrayah has its origins in the ancient Sumerian culture, which flourished in the region of Mesopotamia between the 4th and 3rd millennia BC. It is derived from the Sumerian word "Ar-rayah," which translates to "the one who walks with the sun." This name was likely given to individuals born during the spring equinox, a time of great significance in the Sumerian culture.
One of the earliest known records of the name Arrayah can be found in the cuneiform tablets of the Sumerian city-state of Uruk, dating back to around 2500 BC. These tablets mention an individual named "Ar-rayah," who was a prominent priest in the temple of the sun god, Utu.
The name Arrayah also appears in several ancient Mesopotamian myths and legends. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest literary works in human history, there is a character named Arrayah who is described as a wise and revered seer. This character plays a pivotal role in guiding the hero Gilgamesh on his quest for immortality.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Arrayah. One of the most famous was Arrayah of Lagash, a Sumerian ruler who reigned in the city-state of Lagash in the 24th century BC. He is renowned for his ambitious building projects, including the construction of several impressive ziggurats and temples dedicated to various deities.
Another prominent figure with the name Arrayah was a Babylonian astrologer and mathematician who lived in the 6th century BC. He is credited with developing advanced mathematical techniques and making significant contributions to the field of astronomy.
In the 1st century AD, there was a Jewish scholar named Arrayah ben Ahijah who was renowned for his expertise in the Torah and the Talmud. He is said to have had a vast knowledge of Jewish law and traditions, and his teachings were highly regarded by his contemporaries.
During the Islamic Golden Age, a philosopher and scientist named Arrayah al-Andalusi made significant contributions to the fields of mathematics, astronomy, and optics. Born in the city of Cordoba in present-day Spain in the 10th century AD, his works on light and vision were particularly influential and were studied by scholars across the Islamic world and beyond.
In the 13th century, a Persian poet named Arrayah Isfahani gained fame for his lyrical compositions and his mastery of the ghazal form. His poetry, which often celebrated love and the beauty of nature, was widely appreciated and continues to be studied and admired by literary scholars to this day.
People
Arrayah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Arrayah 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
Arrayah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Arrayah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 193 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Arrayah 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 1,775,929 US residents.
Is Arrayah a common name?
We classify Arrayah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 73.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 195 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Arrayah most popular?
The single biggest year for Arrayah was 2008, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Arrayah is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Arrayah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Arrayah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Arrayah 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 Arrayah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Arrayah 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 Arrayah 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Arrayah?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.