Layle
An Arabic feminine name meaning "night" or "dark beauty".
Name Census estimates that about 16 living Americans carry the first name Layle. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 77.3% of registrations being female. The average person named Layle today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Layle births was 1968 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Layle. 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 Layle. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
16
~ 1 in 21,422,146 Americans
Peak year
1968
6 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
1938 SSA rank
#3,807
Tracked since 1938
Census
Layle in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 137 people with the first name Layle, which placed it at #47,543 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
#47,543
National first-name rank
People counted
137
137 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
73.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Layle
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Layle is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (16.1%) and Hispanic (8.8%). 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 Layle 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 Layle at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.0% · 100
- Black or African American16.1% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino8.8% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.5% · 2
- Two or more races0.7% · 1
Gender
Gender distribution for Layle
Layle is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 22 total registrations, 5 (22.7%) were male and 17 (77.3%) were female.
Layle as a male name
- Ranked #3,807 in 1938
- 5 male births in 1938
- Peak: 1938 (5 births)
Layle as a female name
- Ranked #7,885 in 1971
- 6 female births in 1971
- Peak: 1968 (6 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Layle leans strongly female. 121 people counted with this name were female (80.7%), compared with 29 male bearers (19.3%).
Popularity
Layle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Layle from the 1930s through to the 1970s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 11 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
Layle 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 Layle 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 Layle
The name Layle is believed to have originated from the Arabic language, with its roots tracing back to the medieval period in the Middle East. It is derived from the Arabic word "lail," which means "night" or "darkness." This connection to the night sky likely stems from the cultural significance and imagery associated with the celestial bodies in Arabic literature and traditions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Layle can be found in the famous Arabic literary work, "The Book of One Thousand and One Nights," a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales from the Islamic Golden Age. In this work, Layle is mentioned as the name of a beautiful and enchanting female character, further solidifying its association with the mystique and allure of the night.
Throughout history, the name Layle has been borne by several notable individuals. One such person was Layle Murad (1918-1976), a renowned Egyptian actress and singer who was widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the Arab entertainment industry during the mid-20th century. Her performances and contributions to Arab cinema and music left an indelible mark on the cultural landscape.
Another prominent figure with the name Layle was Layle Alawi (1910-1993), a Syrian poet and activist known for her advocacy of women's rights and her poignant literary works that explored themes of love, identity, and societal issues. Her poetry collections, such as "The Lamp of the Heart," garnered critical acclaim and solidified her place in the canon of Arabic literature.
In the realm of scholarship, Layle Bashir (1925-2012) was a renowned Palestinian academic and author who specialized in Arabic literature and Islamic studies. Her extensive research and publications shed light on the rich cultural heritage of the Arab world, earning her numerous accolades and recognition from academic institutions around the globe.
The name Layle has also been associated with figures from the world of sports. One notable example is Layle Alajamí (born 1977), a former Moroccan professional tennis player who achieved a career-high ranking of No. 28 in the world. Her achievements on the court brought pride and recognition to her home country and inspired countless aspiring athletes.
Lastly, in the field of music, Layle Majali (born 1982) is a renowned Jordanian singer and songwriter whose soulful voice and poetic lyrics have captivated audiences across the Middle East. Her albums, such as "Layle wa Qamar" (Night and Moon), have garnered critical acclaim and solidified her status as a prominent figure in the contemporary Arabic music scene.
People
Layle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Layle as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Layle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Layle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 16 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Layle 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 21,422,146 US residents.
Is Layle a common name?
We classify Layle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 36.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 22 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Layle most popular?
The single biggest year for Layle was 1968, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Layle is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Layle in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 137 people with the name Layle, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #47,543 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 Layle 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 Layle?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Layle leans strongly female. 121 people counted with this name were female (80.7%), compared with 29 male bearers (19.3%). 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 Layle?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Layle is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (16.1%) and Hispanic (8.8%). 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 Layle most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Layle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.0% (100 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 Layle in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Layle a female name?
Yes, 77.3% of people registered as Layle 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 Layle still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Layle 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 Layle 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 called Layle?
You can see how many people share the name Layle on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.