Hayla
A feminine Arabic name meaning "bright as the moon" or "halo".
Name Census estimates that about 455 living Americans carry the first name Hayla. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Hayla today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hayla births was 2009 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hayla. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Hayla with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
455
~ 1 in 753,306 Americans
Peak year
2009
27 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,130
Tracked since 1987
Census
Hayla in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 449 people with the first name Hayla, which placed it at #22,241 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
#22,241
National first-name rank
People counted
449
449 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
64.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hayla
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hayla is White at 64.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.8%) and Black (11.4%). 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 Hayla 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 Hayla at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.6% · 290
- Hispanic or Latino11.8% · 53
- Black or African American11.4% · 51
- Two or more races8.5% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 8
Popularity
Hayla: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hayla from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 200 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
Hayla 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 Hayla during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Haylas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Hayla
The name Hayla is believed to have its origins in the Arabic language, with roots tracing back to the Middle Eastern region. It is derived from the Arabic word "haylah," which means "beautiful" or "graceful." This name has been in use since ancient times, with records indicating its presence in various regions of the Middle East and North Africa.
One of the earliest known references to the name Hayla can be found in ancient Arabic poetry and literature. The name is mentioned in several works from the 7th and 8th centuries, often used to describe the beauty and elegance of a woman or a beloved. It is possible that the name gained popularity during this period, as it resonated with the cultural values and aesthetic ideals of the time.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Hayla. One of the earliest recorded examples is Hayla bint al-Hudhayl (born around 590 CE), a renowned Arabic poetess from the pre-Islamic era. Her poetry celebrated the virtues of courage, honor, and loyalty, and she is considered one of the most influential female poets of her time.
Another historical figure who carried the name Hayla was Hayla bint Abi Talib (born around 615 CE), the daughter of Abu Talib and the paternal aunt of the Prophet Muhammad. She is remembered for her unwavering support and loyalty to her nephew, and her acceptance of Islam is seen as a significant event in early Islamic history.
In the 10th century, Hayla al-Muhallabiyya (born around 920 CE) was a prominent female scholar and poet from Baghdad. She was renowned for her expertise in Arabic literature and her contributions to the intellectual circles of the Abbasid Caliphate.
During the late medieval period, Hayla al-Andalusiyya (born around 1140 CE) was a renowned Andalusian poet and scholar from Spain. Her works were highly regarded for their elegance and depth, and she was celebrated for her mastery of various literary forms.
More recently, Hayla Ghazi (born in 1880) was a Syrian poet and writer who played a significant role in the Arab literary renaissance of the early 20th century. Her works explored themes of love, patriotism, and social reform, and she is considered a pioneering figure in modern Arabic literature.
While these are just a few examples, the name Hayla has been carried by many notable individuals throughout history, each contributing to the rich tapestry of cultural and intellectual traditions across the Middle East and beyond.
People
Hayla + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hayla 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
Hayla: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hayla?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 455 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hayla 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 753,306 US residents.
Is Hayla a common name?
We classify Hayla as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 462 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hayla most popular?
The single biggest year for Hayla was 2009, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hayla is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Hayla in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 449 people with the name Hayla, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,241 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 Hayla 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 Hayla?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Hayla appears almost entirely female. Of the 440 people counted with this name, 99.8% 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 Hayla?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hayla is White at 64.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.8%) and Black (11.4%). 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 Hayla most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Hayla in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.6% (290 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 Hayla in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Hayla a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hayla 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 Hayla still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Hayla 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 Hayla 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 Hayla?
Find out how many Americans are named Hayla on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.