Shakeela
A lovely feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "beautiful" or "graceful".
Name Census estimates that about 245 living Americans carry the first name Shakeela. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Shakeela today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shakeela births was 1991 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shakeela. 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
245
~ 1 in 1,398,997 Americans
Peak year
1991
34 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2007 SSA rank
#20,064
Tracked since 1976
Popularity
Shakeela: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shakeela from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 141 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
Shakeela 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 Shakeela during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shakeelas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. New York, Illinois, Ohio recorded the most babies named Shakeela, while Ohio, Illinois, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shakeela
Shakeela is a feminine name with origins in the Arabic language. It is derived from the Arabic word "shakeel," which means "beautiful" or "graceful." The name gained popularity in the Middle East and parts of North Africa during the medieval period, particularly among Muslim communities.
One of the earliest known references to the name Shakeela can be found in Arabic literature from the 9th century. It was used as a descriptive term to praise the beauty and elegance of women. Over time, it evolved into a given name, reflecting the cultural and linguistic influences of the region.
During the golden age of Islamic civilization, the name Shakeela appeared in various historical records and literary works. It was often associated with poetry, art, and cultural expressions that celebrated feminine beauty and grace. Some notable individuals who bore this name include:
1. Shakeela bint Al-Hussain (c. 850-920), a renowned Arabic poet and scholar from modern-day Iraq, who was praised for her literary contributions and intellectual prowess.
2. Shakeela Al-Andalusiyya (c. 1050-1130), a celebrated Andalusian musician and singer from the Iberian Peninsula, known for her virtuosity and melodic compositions.
3. Shakeela bint Malik (c. 1200-1270), a influential Persian architect and engineer who oversaw the construction of several monumental buildings and bridges in the region.
4. Shakeela Al-Dimashqi (c. 1300-1380), a Syrian calligrapher and artist renowned for her intricate and elegant calligraphic works, which adorned numerous manuscripts and architectural structures.
5. Shakeela Al-Qahirah (c. 1450-1520), an Egyptian mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the development of advanced astronomical instruments.
The name Shakeela continued to be used across various parts of the Middle East, North Africa, and the Islamic world, carrying with it the connotations of beauty, grace, and cultural refinement. Its enduring popularity over the centuries reflects the rich heritage and cultural traditions associated with this name.
People
Shakeela + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shakeela as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Shakeela: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shakeela?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 245 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shakeela 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 1,398,997 US residents.
Is Shakeela a common name?
We classify Shakeela as "Very Rare". It ranks above 76.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 257 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shakeela most popular?
The single biggest year for Shakeela was 1991, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shakeela is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Shakeela a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shakeela 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.