Kanylah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "sweet-smelling flower".
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the first name Kanylah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kanylah today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kanylah births was 2022 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kanylah. 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
135
~ 1 in 2,538,921 Americans
Peak year
2022
16 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,148
Tracked since 2010
Popularity
Kanylah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kanylah from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 73 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
Kanylah 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 Kanylah 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 Kanylah
The name Kanylah is a relatively modern invention, without any clear ties to a specific language or culture of origin. It is likely a creative spelling variation of the name Kanya, which has roots in Sanskrit and Hindi. In these languages, "Kanya" means "young woman" or "virgin."
While the name Kanya appears in ancient Hindu texts and mythology, such as the Vedas and Puranas, there are no known historical references to the specific spelling variation "Kanylah." This form of the name seems to have emerged in recent decades, potentially inspired by the popularity of unique and unconventional baby names.
Due to its modern nature, there are limited records of individuals bearing the name Kanylah throughout history. However, a few notable examples can be found:
1. Kanylah Brown (born 1992) is an American former collegiate basketball player who played for the University of Tennessee between 2010 and 2014.
2. Kanylah Gayton (born 1999) is an American track and field athlete specializing in the heptathlon and long jump events.
3. Kanylah Deva (born 1991) is a British-Indian singer-songwriter and music producer known for her fusion of Western and Indian musical styles.
4. Kanylah Seymour (born 1987) is a Bahamian sprinter who has represented her country in international competitions, including the Olympic Games.
5. Kanylah Hurst (born 1995) is an American former collegiate soccer player who played for the University of Alabama from 2013 to 2017.
It is important to note that these individuals are relatively recent, reflecting the modern origin of the name Kanylah. As a unique and creative spelling variation, it has yet to establish a deep historical foothold, but its popularity may continue to evolve in the future.
People
Kanylah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kanylah 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
Kanylah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kanylah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 135 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kanylah 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 2,538,921 US residents.
Is Kanylah a common name?
We classify Kanylah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 136 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kanylah most popular?
The single biggest year for Kanylah was 2022, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kanylah is about 8 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 Kanylah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kanylah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kanylah 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 Kanylah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kanylah 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 Kanylah 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 are called Kanylah?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.