Kahlilah
Feminine Arabic name related to words for "friend" or "companion".
Name Census estimates that about 51 living Americans carry the first name Kahlilah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kahlilah today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kahlilah births was 1976 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kahlilah. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Kahlilah. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
51
~ 1 in 6,720,673 Americans
Peak year
1976
9 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
2024 SSA rank
#16,335
Tracked since 1976
Popularity
Kahlilah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kahlilah from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 29 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kahlilah 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 Kahlilah 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 Kahlilah
The name Kahlilah is of Arabic origin, derived from the Semitic root "kh-l-l" which means "friend" or "beloved". It is believed to have emerged in the Middle East around the 7th century AD, during the spread of Islam and the Arabic language across the region.
In its earliest form, the name was likely spelled as "Khalilah" or "Khalila", with the addition of the "Kah" prefix being a later variation. The name holds deep spiritual significance in Islamic tradition, as it is closely associated with the word "Khalil", which is one of the epithets of the Prophet Abraham in the Quran, meaning "the friend of God".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kahlilah can be found in the medieval Arabic literature, where it was used to refer to female companions or friends. In the 12th century, a famous Arabic poet and scholar named Abu al-Qasim al-Shabbi composed a poem titled "Qasidah al-Khalilah", in which he used the name as a metaphor for a beloved friend.
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Kahlilah. One of the earliest was Kahlilah bint Ahmad al-Nabulsi (1758-1835), a renowned Syrian scholar and poet who authored several works on Islamic jurisprudence and Arabic literature. Another prominent figure was Kahlilah al-Shahrazuri (1243-1311), an Iraqi Muslim jurist and writer who made significant contributions to the study of Islamic law.
In the modern era, Kahlilah Jeffries (born 1992) is an American professional basketball player who has played for various teams in the WNBA. Kahlilah Al-Sabah (born 1964) is a Kuwaiti writer and activist who has written extensively on women's rights and social issues in the Middle East.
Additionally, Kahlilah Morgan (born 1982) is a British actress and model known for her roles in television series such as "Grange Hill" and "Casualty". Kahlilah Noel (born 1992) is an American singer and songwriter who gained popularity through her participation in the reality show "The Voice".
Kahlilah has remained a popular name in many Arabic-speaking countries, as well as among Muslim communities around the world, due to its rich cultural and religious significance.
People
Kahlilah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kahlilah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kahlilah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kahlilah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 51 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kahlilah 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 6,720,673 US residents.
Is Kahlilah a common name?
We classify Kahlilah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 54.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 55 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kahlilah most popular?
The single biggest year for Kahlilah was 1976, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kahlilah is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kahlilah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kahlilah 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.