Halayna
Of Celtic origin, meaning "young fair-haired maiden".
Name Census estimates that about 176 living Americans carry the first name Halayna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Halayna today is around 16 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Halayna births was 2010 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Halayna. 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
176
~ 1 in 1,947,468 Americans
Peak year
2010
16 babies that year
Average age
16
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,589
Tracked since 1997
Popularity
Halayna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Halayna from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 82 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Halayna remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Halayna 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 Halayna 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 Halayna
The name Halayna originates from the ancient Sanskrit language of India, dating back to around the 5th century BCE. It is derived from the word "halahala," which means "deadly poison" or "venom." This unusual etymology suggests that the name may have been given to children as a form of protection against harm or illness.
In Hindu mythology, the name Halayna is associated with the churning of the cosmic ocean, known as the Samudra Manthan. During this event, a deadly poison called Halahala emerged and threatened to destroy the entire universe. Lord Shiva consumed the poison to save the world, and his wife Parvati grabbed his throat to prevent the poison from entering his body, causing his neck to turn blue. This mythological connection may have influenced the name's meaning and symbolism.
The earliest recorded use of the name Halayna can be traced back to ancient Sanskrit texts, such as the Mahabharata and the Puranas. However, it was not a widely popular name during that time period and remained relatively obscure.
Throughout history, there have been a few notable individuals who bore the name Halayna. One of the earliest was Halayna Devi, a Hindu princess who lived in the 9th century CE and was renowned for her beauty and devotion to the goddess Kali.
Another notable figure was Halayna Bhatta, a 12th-century Sanskrit scholar and grammarian from the region of present-day Kerala, India. He is best known for his work on the Sanskrit grammatical treatise, the Vakyapadiya.
In the 16th century, there was Halayna Raya, a powerful ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire in southern India. He was known for his military conquests and patronage of the arts and literature.
During the 18th century, Halayna Das was a prominent Bengali poet and devotional singer who composed numerous songs praising the Hindu god Krishna.
Lastly, in the 19th century, Halayna Sundari Devi was a renowned Indian social reformer and educator who fought for women's rights and established several schools for girls in Bengal.
While the name Halayna has its roots in ancient Sanskrit and Hindu mythology, it remains an uncommon and distinctive name even in modern times. Its unique meaning and historical significance make it a fascinating choice for those seeking a name with cultural depth and symbolism.
People
Halayna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Halayna 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
Halayna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Halayna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 176 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Halayna 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 1,947,468 US residents.
Is Halayna a common name?
We classify Halayna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 178 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Halayna most popular?
The single biggest year for Halayna was 2010, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Halayna is about 16 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 Halayna in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Halayna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Halayna 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 Halayna still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Halayna 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 Halayna 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 have Halayna as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.