Shalay
Of African origin, meaning "a beautiful sunrise" or "to greet."
Name Census estimates that about 108 living Americans carry the first name Shalay. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Shalay today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shalay births was 1992 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shalay. 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
108
~ 1 in 3,173,651 Americans
Peak year
1992
11 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2007 SSA rank
#15,218
Tracked since 1981
Census
Shalay in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 175 people with the first name Shalay, which placed it at #41,669 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
#41,669
National first-name rank
People counted
175
175 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
69.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shalay
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shalay is Black at 69.7%. The next largest groups are White (14.9%) and Hispanic (6.3%). 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 Shalay 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 Shalay at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American69.7% · 122
- White14.9% · 26
- Hispanic or Latino6.3% · 11
- Two or more races5.1% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.3% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 3
Popularity
Shalay: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shalay from the 1980s through to the 2000s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 59 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Shalay remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shalay 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 Shalay 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 Shalay
The name Shalay is derived from the Sanskrit language and has its roots in ancient Indian culture. It is believed to have originated during the Vedic period, which spans from around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE. The name is composed of the Sanskrit words "shala" meaning "house" or "abode," and "ay" which is a common suffix used in Indian names.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Shalay can be found in the ancient Hindu scripture, the Mahabharata. In this epic, Shalay is referred to as a powerful warrior who fought alongside the Pandavas in the great battle of Kurukshetra. While the exact dates are uncertain, the events of the Mahabharata are estimated to have occurred around the 9th century BCE.
In the 6th century BCE, a renowned Indian philosopher and scholar named Shalay Upanishad lived. He is credited with authoring several Upanishads, which are influential philosophical texts that form the theoretical basis of Hinduism. Shalay Upanishad's teachings focused on the concept of brahman, the ultimate reality, and the path to spiritual enlightenment.
During the Mauryan Empire, which ruled over a vast expanse of ancient India from 322 BCE to 185 BCE, a notable figure named Shalay Vardhana served as a trusted advisor to the emperor Ashoka. Shalay Vardhana was known for his wisdom and played a crucial role in shaping the policies of the empire, particularly in promoting the principles of dharma (righteous conduct) and ahimsa (non-violence).
In the 12th century CE, a renowned Indian mathematician and astronomer named Shalay Siddhanth made significant contributions to the field of mathematics. He is best known for his work on the calculation of planetary positions and the development of advanced mathematical techniques for astronomical calculations.
Another notable figure with the name Shalay was Shalay Khan, a prominent military commander who served under the Mughal Empire in the 17th century. Shalay Khan rose through the ranks and became the governor of several provinces, earning a reputation for his strategic military prowess and administrative skills.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Shalay, highlighting its deep roots in Indian culture and its association with various fields, including philosophy, literature, mathematics, astronomy, and military leadership.
People
Shalay + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shalay 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
Shalay: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shalay?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 108 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shalay 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 3,173,651 US residents.
Is Shalay a common name?
We classify Shalay as "Very Rare". It ranks above 65.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 112 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shalay most popular?
The single biggest year for Shalay was 1992, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shalay 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 Shalay in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 175 people with the name Shalay, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #41,669 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 Shalay 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 Shalay?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shalay appears almost entirely female. Of the 176 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Shalay?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shalay is Black at 69.7%. The next largest groups are White (14.9%) and Hispanic (6.3%). 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 Shalay most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Shalay in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.7% (122 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 Shalay in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shalay a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shalay 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 Shalay still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shalay 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 Shalay 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 Americans are named Shalay?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.