Makaiyah
A feminine name of Indigenous American origin meaning "truth".
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the first name Makaiyah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Makaiyah today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Makaiyah births was 2009 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Makaiyah. 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
209
~ 1 in 1,639,973 Americans
Peak year
2009
16 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,714
Tracked since 2002
Popularity
Makaiyah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Makaiyah 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 95 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Makaiyah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Makaiyah 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 Makaiyah 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 Makaiyah
The name Makaiyah is a relatively modern invention, likely created in the late 20th or early 21st century. It does not appear to have any direct roots in a specific language or culture. Instead, it seems to be a creative combination of sounds and letters that give it a unique and distinctive quality.
One possible origin could be a blend of the names Makaiah and Kaiya, both of which are modern names with uncertain etymologies. The prefix "Ma-" is found in many names across various cultures, often carrying meanings related to greatness or nobility. The suffix "-iyah" resembles the Hebrew name endings like Mariah or Elijah, though there is no evidence of a direct connection.
As a relatively new name, there are no known historical references or recorded examples from ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, a few notable individuals have borne the name Makaiyah in recent years:
1. Makaiyah Bethea (born 2008), an American child actress known for her roles in television shows like "Atlanta" and "Greenleaf."
2. Makaiyah Shumpert (born 2016), the daughter of NBA player Iman Shumpert and singer/actress Teyana Taylor.
3. Makaiyah Warren, a young American girl who gained attention in 2018 for her act of kindness towards a homeless man.
4. Makaiyah Slocum, a high school basketball player from Georgia who received athletic scholarship offers in the late 2010s.
5. Makaiyah Shackleford, a young singer and songwriter from California who released her debut single "Butterfly" in 2020.
While these individuals have brought some recognition to the name Makaiyah, it remains a relatively uncommon and contemporary choice, without a long historical lineage or cultural significance. As a unique and modern name, its true origins and meanings may continue to evolve over time.
People
Makaiyah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Makaiyah 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
Makaiyah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Makaiyah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 209 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Makaiyah 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 1,639,973 US residents.
Is Makaiyah a common name?
We classify Makaiyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 211 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Makaiyah most popular?
The single biggest year for Makaiyah was 2009, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Makaiyah is about 14 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 Makaiyah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Makaiyah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Makaiyah 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 Makaiyah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Makaiyah 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 Makaiyah 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 named Makaiyah?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Makaiyah, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.