Delayla
A feminine name derived from the Arabic word "delal" meaning "coquetry" or "flirtatiousness".
Name Census estimates that about 311 living Americans carry the first name Delayla. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Delayla today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Delayla births was 2018 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Delayla. 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
311
~ 1 in 1,102,104 Americans
Peak year
2018
21 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,825
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Delayla: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Delayla 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 159 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Delayla remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Delayla 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 Delayla during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Delaylas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Delayla
The name Delayla is believed to have originated from the Arabic language, with its roots tracing back to the Middle East and North Africa regions. The name is derived from the Arabic word "layla," which means "night" or "dark beauty." It is thought to have emerged during the medieval period, when Arabic culture and language flourished across the region.
In ancient Arabic literature, the name Layla is famously associated with the tragic love story of Layla and Majnun, a classic tale of forbidden love and passion. This narrative, written by the Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi in the 12th century, has become a timeless symbol of romantic love in Arabic and Persian literature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Delayla can be found in the historical records of the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled over a vast territory spanning from modern-day Iran to North Africa between the 8th and 13th centuries. During this period, the name Delayla was occasionally bestowed upon young girls, reflecting the cultural and linguistic influence of the Arabic language.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Delayla. One such figure was Delayla bint Abi Hatim al-Ansariyah (born around 620 CE), a revered Islamic scholar and poet from Medina, renowned for her knowledge of the Quran and hadith (prophetic traditions).
Another prominent figure was Delayla al-Muayyad (1008-1074 CE), a renowned Arab-Sicilian princess and poet who lived during the Kalbid dynasty's rule in Sicily. Her poetic works, which explored themes of love and longing, were highly acclaimed and preserved in various literary anthologies.
In the realm of music, Delayla Derbyshire (1937-2001) was a pioneering British electronic composer and musician, best known for her innovative work on the iconic Doctor Who theme music in the 1960s.
Delayla Noorali (born 1980) is a contemporary Canadian actress and writer, recognized for her roles in various television series and films, as well as her contributions to the literary world.
Lastly, Delayla Bourdeaux (born 1992) is a French professional tennis player who has achieved notable success on the WTA Tour, reaching the semifinals of several Grand Slam tournaments.
People
Delayla + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Delayla 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
Delayla: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Delayla?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 311 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Delayla 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 1,102,104 US residents.
Is Delayla a common name?
We classify Delayla as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 314 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Delayla most popular?
The single biggest year for Delayla was 2018, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Delayla is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Delayla a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Delayla 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.
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.