Kalayah
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly a blend of words meaning "beautiful voice".
Name Census estimates that about 1,303 living Americans carry the first name Kalayah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kalayah today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kalayah births was 2024 (140 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kalayah. 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
- • Kalayah is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 9 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 263,050 Americans
Peak year
2024
140 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,527
Tracked since 1998
Popularity
Kalayah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kalayah from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 595 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kalayah 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 Kalayah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kalayahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Kalayah, while Missouri, Minnesota, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kalayah
The given name Kalayah is a unique and intriguing one, with its origins shrouded in mystery and speculation. Some scholars suggest that it may have roots in ancient Mesopotamian cultures, where variations of the name were used to honor deities or celestial bodies. Others trace its lineage to the Semitic languages, postulating that it could be derived from words meaning "radiant" or "luminous."
Interestingly, a name strikingly similar to Kalayah appears in the ancient Sanskrit texts of India, where it was used to refer to a celestial nymph or apsara. This has led some to hypothesize that the name may have traveled along the Silk Road trade routes, adapting and evolving as it encountered new cultures and languages.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Kalayah can be found in the annals of the Byzantine Empire, where a noblewoman by that name was mentioned in the court records of the 6th century AD. Unfortunately, little else is known about this individual, but her existence serves as a tantalizing glimpse into the name's history.
In the 12th century, a renowned Persian poet and philosopher, Kalayah al-Din Rumi, rose to prominence. While not his given name at birth, he adopted the moniker Kalayah al-Din, which translates to "the radiant of faith," as a testament to his spiritual enlightenment and literary prowess.
Fast-forwarding several centuries, we encounter Kalayah bint Khalid, a celebrated Arabian horsewoman and breeder from the 18th century. Her expertise and dedication to preserving the noble Arabian horse breed earned her great respect and admiration throughout the region.
Another notable figure bearing the name Kalayah was a 19th-century Indian courtesan and musician, renowned for her mastery of the sitar and her contributions to the rich cultural traditions of the Mughal Empire.
While these historical figures offer a glimpse into the name's diverse heritage, the true origins and meaning of Kalayah remain enigmatic, shrouded in the mists of time and open to interpretation by scholars and linguists alike.
People
Kalayah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kalayah 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
Kalayah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kalayah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,303 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kalayah 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 263,050 US residents.
Is Kalayah a common name?
We classify Kalayah as "Rare". It ranks above 91.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,313 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kalayah most popular?
The single biggest year for Kalayah was 2024, when 140 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kalayah is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kalayah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kalayah 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.