Maila
A feminine name of Swedish origin meaning "land's fertile area".
Name Census estimates that about 707 living Americans carry the first name Maila. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Maila today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Maila births was 2022 (70 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Maila. 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
707
~ 1 in 484,801 Americans
Peak year
2022
70 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,467
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Maila: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Maila from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 259 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
Maila 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 Maila during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mailas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Hawaii, Florida recorded the most babies named Maila, while Texas, Florida, Hawaii recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 35 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Maila
The name Maila has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which is an ancient Indo-Aryan language that originated in the Indian subcontinent. It can be traced back to the Vedic period, which spans from around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE. The name Maila is derived from the Sanskrit word 'mala', which means 'garland' or 'wreath'.
In Hindu mythology, garlands hold a significant place as they are often used in religious ceremonies and rituals. They are offered to deities as a symbol of reverence and devotion. As such, the name Maila could have been associated with religious or spiritual connotations in its early usage.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Maila can be found in the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharata, which is believed to have been composed between the 8th and 4th centuries BCE. In the epic, Maila is mentioned as the name of a minor character, a prince from a kingdom in the central regions of the Indian subcontinent.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who have borne the name Maila. One of the earliest recorded instances is Maila, a 7th-century Indian philosopher and scholar who contributed to the development of the Nyaya school of Hindu philosophy. He is believed to have lived between 620 CE and 670 CE.
Another prominent figure with the name Maila was Maila Mukhtar, a 16th-century Indian poet and writer from the Mughal Empire. He was born in 1550 and is known for his contributions to the literary traditions of the Urdu and Persian languages.
In the 18th century, Maila Ancilla was a Swedish botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of lichens. She was born in 1718 and lived until 1782.
Moving into the 20th century, Maila Nurmi was an American actress and television personality who gained fame for her portrayal of the character Vampira in the 1950s. She was born in 1922 and passed away in 2008.
More recently, Maila Lani Eichholz is a contemporary American singer and songwriter known for her work in the indie folk and alternative rock genres. She was born in 1988 and continues to be an active performer and recording artist.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have carried the name Maila throughout history, each contributing to various fields and leaving their mark in their respective domains.
People
Maila + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Maila as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Maila: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Maila?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 707 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Maila 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 484,801 US residents.
Is Maila a common name?
We classify Maila as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 716 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Maila most popular?
The single biggest year for Maila was 2022, when 70 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Maila is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Maila a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Maila 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.