Cheila
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "dark beauty".
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the first name Cheila. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cheila today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cheila births was 2002 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cheila. 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
117
~ 1 in 2,929,524 Americans
Peak year
2002
11 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2011 SSA rank
#13,663
Tracked since 1978
Census
Cheila in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 335 people with the first name Cheila, which placed it at #27,353 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
#27,353
National first-name rank
People counted
335
335 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
71.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cheila
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cheila is Hispanic at 71.3%. The next largest groups are White (16.4%) and Black (8.4%). 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 Cheila 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 Cheila at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino71.3% · 239
- White16.4% · 55
- Black or African American8.4% · 28
- Two or more races2.1% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 2
Popularity
Cheila: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cheila from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 49 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cheila 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 Cheila 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 Cheila
The name Cheila is believed to have its origins in the Arabic language. It is derived from the Arabic word "khayaal," which means "imagination" or "fantasy." This name was likely first used in the Middle East during the medieval period, when Arabic culture and language were flourishing.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cheila can be found in a 12th-century Arabic manuscript that tells the story of a young woman named Cheila who was known for her vivid imagination and storytelling abilities. This manuscript provides insights into the cultural significance of the name and its association with creativity and imagination.
In the 13th century, there is a record of a renowned poet named Cheila al-Andalusiya who hailed from the region of Andalusia, which was then under Moorish rule. Her poetry was celebrated for its imaginative imagery and metaphors, reflecting the essence of her name.
The name Cheila also appears in some ancient Persian texts, suggesting its use may have extended beyond the Arab world. In a 14th-century Persian epic, there is a character named Cheila who is described as a skilled weaver of intricate tapestries, reflecting the creative connotations of the name.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Cheila. One such person was Cheila al-Asadi, a 9th-century Arab mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of algebra and trigonometry.
Another famous Cheila was Cheila al-Rumi, a 13th-century Sufi mystic and poet from the Ottoman Empire. Her spiritual writings and poetry were celebrated for their depth and imaginative symbolism, reflecting the name's association with creativity and imagination.
In the 16th century, there was a Cheila al-Qawwali, a renowned singer and musician who specialized in the Qawwali style of devotional music. Her performances were praised for their ability to transport listeners to a realm of spiritual imagination.
During the 17th century, Cheila al-Baghdadi was a prominent calligrapher from Baghdad who was renowned for her intricate and imaginative calligraphic designs, further reinforcing the name's connection with artistic expression and creativity.
While these are just a few examples, the name Cheila has been carried by many individuals throughout history, each adding their unique contributions and interpretations to the rich tapestry of this evocative name.
People
Cheila + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cheila as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cheila: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cheila?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 117 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cheila 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 2,929,524 US residents.
Is Cheila a common name?
We classify Cheila as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 121 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cheila most popular?
The single biggest year for Cheila was 2002, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cheila is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cheila in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 335 people with the name Cheila, or 0.11 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #27,353 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 Cheila 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 Cheila?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cheila appears almost entirely female. Of the 330 people counted with this name, 99.7% 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 Cheila?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cheila is Hispanic at 71.3%. The next largest groups are White (16.4%) and Black (8.4%). 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 Cheila most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Cheila in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.3% (239 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 Cheila in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cheila a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cheila 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 Cheila still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cheila 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 Cheila 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 named Cheila?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.