Mayling
A feminine name of Chinese origin meaning "beautiful and refined".
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the first name Mayling. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mayling today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mayling births was 1979 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mayling. 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
117
~ 1 in 2,929,524 Americans
Peak year
1979
9 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2023 SSA rank
#16,761
Tracked since 1975
Census
Mayling in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 486 people with the first name Mayling, which placed it at #21,031 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
#21,031
National first-name rank
People counted
486
486 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
59.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mayling
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mayling is Hispanic at 59.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (27.8%) and Two or More Races (6.8%). 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 Mayling 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 Mayling at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino59.1% · 287
- Asian and Pacific Islander27.8% · 135
- Two or more races6.8% · 33
- White4.1% · 20
- Black or African American2.3% · 11
Popularity
Mayling: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mayling from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 31 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mayling 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 Mayling during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Maylings live
Origin
Meaning and history of Mayling
The given name Mayling has its origins in Chinese culture, with roots that can be traced back several centuries. The name is a combination of two Chinese characters, "mei" and "ling," which together convey a sense of beauty and elegance.
In ancient Chinese literature, the name Mayling is mentioned in several classical texts, including the famous poetry anthology "The Book of Songs," dating back to the 6th century BC. It was often used to describe the graceful beauty of nature, such as the delicate petals of a flower or the gentle flow of a stream.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Mayling was a renowned scholar and poet who lived during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). She was known for her exquisite calligraphy and her contributions to the literary arts. Unfortunately, historical records do not provide her exact birth and death dates.
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD), a prominent figure named Mayling was a highly respected calligrapher and painter. Her works were celebrated for their delicate brushstrokes and captivating depictions of natural scenes. She was born in 1535 and lived until 1612.
In more recent history, Mayling Soong (1898-2003) was a prominent Chinese political figure and the wife of Chiang Kai-shek, the former leader of the Republic of China. She played a crucial role in diplomacy and international relations, serving as a representative for her country on various global platforms.
Another notable individual with the name Mayling was Mayling Yu (1920-2011), a renowned Chinese-American author and translator. She was widely recognized for her works that bridged the cultural gap between East and West, promoting understanding and appreciation of Chinese literature in the Western world.
Mayling Chan (1934-2021) was a celebrated Hong Kong-based actress and singer who enjoyed a prolific career spanning over six decades. She was widely regarded as one of the most iconic figures in the Cantonese entertainment industry, known for her exceptional talent and versatility.
While the name Mayling has its roots in Chinese culture, it has transcended borders and gained popularity around the world, resonating with individuals who appreciate its elegant and poetic connotations.
People
Mayling + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mayling 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
Mayling: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mayling?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 117 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mayling 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 2,929,524 US residents.
Is Mayling a common name?
We classify Mayling as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 122 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mayling most popular?
The single biggest year for Mayling was 1979, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mayling is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mayling in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 486 people with the name Mayling, or 0.16 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #21,031 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 Mayling 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 Mayling?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mayling appears almost entirely female. Of the 491 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Mayling?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mayling is Hispanic at 59.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (27.8%) and Two or More Races (6.8%). 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 Mayling most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Mayling in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.1% (287 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 Mayling in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mayling a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mayling 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 Mayling still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mayling 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 Mayling 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 have the name Mayling?
See how many people have the name Mayling on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.