Khalaya
Of Arabic origin, a feminine name meaning "female friend".
Name Census estimates that about 196 living Americans carry the first name Khalaya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Khalaya today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Khalaya births was 2022 (25 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Khalaya. 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 Khalaya with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
196
~ 1 in 1,748,747 Americans
Peak year
2022
25 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,779
Tracked since 2000
Popularity
Khalaya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Khalaya from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 87 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
Khalaya 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 Khalaya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Khalayas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Khalaya
The name Khalaya is of Arabic origin, stemming from the root word "khala," which means "to be empty" or "to be free." It is believed to have originated in the Arabian Peninsula during the early Islamic era, around the 7th century CE.
In its earliest form, Khalaya was likely a descriptive name given to individuals who possessed a certain freedom or independence of spirit, or who lived a simple, unencumbered life. The name may have also been associated with concepts of purity or emptiness, reflecting the Islamic principles of detachment from worldly possessions and attachments.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Khalaya can be found in the writings of medieval Arab scholars and historians, who often documented the names of notable figures from their time. However, it is difficult to pinpoint specific historical references due to the scarcity of records from that era.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Khalaya. One of the earliest known was Khalaya bint Al-Walid, a prominent Arab poet and scholar who lived in the 8th century CE. She was renowned for her mastery of Arabic language and literature and was considered a leading intellectual figure of her time.
Another notable Khalaya was Khalaya Al-Andalusiyya, a 10th-century Arabic calligrapher and artist from the Andalusian region of Spain. Her intricate calligraphic works were highly praised and are still considered masterpieces of Islamic art today.
In the 12th century, Khalaya Al-Dimashqiyya was a renowned Islamic scholar and jurist from Damascus. She was widely respected for her knowledge of Islamic law and her contributions to the field of jurisprudence.
During the Ottoman Empire, Khalaya Hatun was a prominent figure in the 16th century. She was the wife of Sultan Selim II and played an influential role in the imperial court, known for her patronage of the arts and her charitable works.
In more recent times, Khalaya Al-Sayyid was an Egyptian feminist and activist who lived in the early 20th century. She was a pioneering figure in the women's rights movement in Egypt and worked tirelessly to promote education and empowerment for women in her country.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who bore the name Khalaya throughout history, highlighting its rich cultural and linguistic heritage.
People
Khalaya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Khalaya 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
Khalaya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Khalaya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 196 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Khalaya 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 1,748,747 US residents.
Is Khalaya a common name?
We classify Khalaya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 198 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Khalaya most popular?
The single biggest year for Khalaya was 2022, when 25 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Khalaya is about 10 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 Khalaya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Khalaya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Khalaya 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 Khalaya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Khalaya 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 Khalaya 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 common is the name Khalaya?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Khalaya on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.