Dalayla
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "guiding light" or "beloved".
Name Census estimates that about 243 living Americans carry the first name Dalayla. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Dalayla today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Dalayla births was 2023 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Dalayla. 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
243
~ 1 in 1,410,512 Americans
Peak year
2023
20 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,435
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Dalayla: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Dalayla 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 105 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Dalayla remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dalayla 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 Dalayla 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 Dalayla
The name Dalayla has its origins rooted in Arabic culture and language. It is believed to have derived from the Arabic word "dalal," which means "guidance" or "leadership." The name's original spelling was "Dalalah," but it underwent linguistic evolution over time, resulting in the modern form, "Dalayla."
In ancient Arabic texts, the name is mentioned as a reference to individuals who possessed qualities of wisdom and the ability to provide direction. The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the 8th century CE, where it was documented in historical records from the Abbasid Caliphate.
One of the most notable historical figures bearing the name Dalayla was Dalayla bint al-Mukhtar, a revered scholar and poet who lived during the late 7th and early 8th centuries in Medina. Her works, which were widely celebrated for their literary excellence, have been preserved and studied by scholars throughout the ages.
Another prominent individual with the name Dalayla was Dalayla al-Basri, a renowned Sufi mystic and spiritual teacher who lived in the 9th century CE. Her teachings and writings on the inner journey and the path to enlightenment have left a lasting impact on Islamic mysticism and continue to be studied by Sufis to this day.
In the 11th century CE, Dalayla al-Andalusi, a celebrated Andalusian poet and philosopher, gained recognition for her contributions to the literary and intellectual circles of the time. Her poetic works, often exploring themes of love, spirituality, and the human condition, are considered among the finest examples of Andalusian literature.
During the 13th century CE, Dalayla bint al-Hafiz, a respected scholar and teacher, made significant contributions to the field of Islamic jurisprudence and legal studies. Her teachings and interpretations of Islamic law were widely influential and left a lasting impact on the development of Islamic legal thought.
In more recent history, Dalayla al-Sham (1920-2005), a Syrian writer and activist, gained prominence for her advocacy of women's rights and her literary works that explored the complexities of Middle Eastern societies. Her novels and essays shed light on the struggles and aspirations of women in the region, earning her a place among the most influential Arab writers of the 20th century.
People
Dalayla + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Dalayla as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Dalayla: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dalayla?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 243 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Dalayla 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 1,410,512 US residents.
Is Dalayla a common name?
We classify Dalayla as "Very Rare". It ranks above 76.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 245 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Dalayla most popular?
The single biggest year for Dalayla was 2023, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Dalayla is about 11 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 Dalayla in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Dalayla a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Dalayla 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 Dalayla still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Dalayla 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 Dalayla 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 named Dalayla?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.