Haili
A feminine name of Hawaiian origin meaning "beautiful wreath".
Name Census estimates that about 814 living Americans carry the first name Haili. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Haili today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Haili births was 2003 (61 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Haili. 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
814
~ 1 in 421,074 Americans
Peak year
2003
61 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2021 SSA rank
#16,102
Tracked since 1977
Census
Haili in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 912 people with the first name Haili, which placed it at #13,300 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
#13,300
National first-name rank
People counted
912
912 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
59.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haili
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Haili is White at 59.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (18.5%) and Hispanic (8.9%). 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 Haili 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 Haili at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.5% · 543
- Asian and Pacific Islander18.5% · 169
- Hispanic or Latino8.9% · 81
- Two or more races6.8% · 62
- Black or African American5.4% · 49
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 8
Popularity
Haili: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Haili from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 399 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
Haili 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 Haili during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Hailis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. California, Louisiana, Arizona recorded the most babies named Haili, while Texas, Ohio, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 9 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Haili
The name Haili finds its origins in the Hawaiian language and culture, with its roots dating back to the ancient Polynesian settlers of the Hawaiian Islands. The name is believed to have derived from the Hawaiian word "hali," which means "to carry" or "to bear." This connection suggests that the name may have been given to individuals who possessed strength and resilience, or perhaps to those born during times of significant events or journeys.
In Hawaiian mythology and folklore, there are no specific references to the name Haili itself. However, the name's connection to the concept of bearing or carrying may have held symbolic significance within the rich oral traditions of the Hawaiian people, who were deeply connected to the natural world and their ancestral roots.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Haili can be traced back to the late 18th and early 19th centuries, when Western explorers and missionaries began documenting the Hawaiian language and culture. One of the earliest known individuals with the name Haili was a Hawaiian chief who lived in the early 19th century, though specific details about his life and achievements are scarce.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Haili, though their fame and impact have varied across different regions and cultures. One such figure was Haili Chalmers (1875-1952), a Scottish missionary who worked in India and dedicated her life to promoting education and social welfare among underprivileged communities.
Another notable bearer of the name was Haili Semayne (1901-1988), a prominent artist from New Zealand who was renowned for her vibrant watercolor paintings depicting the natural landscapes of her homeland. Her works are celebrated for capturing the essence of the rugged beauty of New Zealand's landscapes.
In the realm of literature, Haili Prentice (1920-2003) was an American author and poet whose works explored themes of identity, belonging, and the complexities of the human experience. Her collection of poetry, "Echoes from the Shore," garnered critical acclaim for its lyrical and introspective explorations of the human condition.
The sporting world has also seen its share of individuals named Haili, such as Haili Semisi (1962-2021), a Tongan rugby player who represented his country in international competitions and was renowned for his fierce competitiveness and dedication to the sport.
Finally, in the field of medicine, Haili Yoon (1945-2017) was a South Korean surgeon and researcher who made significant contributions to the advancement of organ transplantation techniques, saving countless lives through her pioneering work.
These examples, spanning diverse cultures, professions, and time periods, illustrate the enduring presence and versatility of the name Haili throughout history, reflecting the rich tapestry of human experiences and achievements associated with this ancient Hawaiian name.
People
Haili + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Haili as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with H
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Haili: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Haili?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 814 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Haili 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 421,074 US residents.
Is Haili a common name?
We classify Haili as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 834 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Haili most popular?
The single biggest year for Haili was 2003, when 61 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Haili is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Haili in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 912 people with the name Haili, or 0.30 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,300 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 Haili 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 Haili?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Haili leans strongly female. 868 people counted with this name were female (95.4%), compared with 42 male bearers (4.6%). 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 Haili?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Haili is White at 59.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (18.5%) and Hispanic (8.9%). 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 Haili most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Haili in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.5% (543 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 Haili in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Haili a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Haili 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 Haili still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Haili 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 Haili 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 Haili?
Find out how many people have the name Haili on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.