Shaquilla
A feminine name with uncertain origin, possibly an invented name variant.
Name Census estimates that about 535 living Americans carry the first name Shaquilla. It is a predominantly female name (93.5% of registrations). The average person named Shaquilla today is around 34 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shaquilla births was 1993 (111 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shaquilla. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Shaquilla with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
535
~ 1 in 640,662 Americans
Peak year
1993
111 babies that year
Average age
34
years old
1995 SSA rank
#10,080
Tracked since 1977
Census
Shaquilla in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 438 people with the first name Shaquilla, which placed it at #22,648 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
#22,648
National first-name rank
People counted
438
438 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
92.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shaquilla
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shaquilla is Black at 92.9%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Shaquilla 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 Shaquilla at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American92.9% · 407
- White3.0% · 13
- Two or more races2.3% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 1
Gender
Gender distribution for Shaquilla
Shaquilla leans heavily female at 93.5% of total registrations, but 36 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Shaquilla as a male name
- Ranked #10,080 in 1995
- 5 male births in 1995
- Peak: 1994 (12 births)
Shaquilla as a female name
- Ranked #17,523 in 2001
- 5 female births in 2001
- Peak: 1993 (100 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shaquilla leans strongly female. 416 people counted with this name were female (96.1%), compared with 17 male bearers (3.9%).
Popularity
Shaquilla: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shaquilla 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 442 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
Shaquilla 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 Shaquilla during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shaquillas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 12 states and territories. Illinois, New York, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Shaquilla, while Virginia, Arkansas, Alabama recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Shaquilla
The name Shaquilla has its origins in the Arabic language, with roots dating back to the 7th century CE. It is derived from the word "shaqiqa," which means "twin" or "to split in two." This suggests that the name may have originally been given to twins or siblings born from the same pregnancy.
During the Islamic Golden Age, which spanned from the 8th to the 13th century, the name Shaquilla gained popularity across the Middle East and North Africa. It was often associated with Islamic scholars and intellectuals, as the pursuit of knowledge and learning was highly valued in these regions during this time period.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Shaquilla can be found in the writings of the renowned Muslim philosopher and polymath, Al-Biruni (973-1048 CE). In his work "Kitab al-Qanun al-Mas'udi," he mentions a scholar named Shaquilla ibn Abi al-Qasim, who was renowned for his expertise in astronomy and mathematics.
Throughout the centuries, several notable figures have borne the name Shaquilla. One such individual was Shaquilla al-Andalusi (1165-1235 CE), a renowned poet and scholar from the Andalusian region of Spain. Her works were celebrated for their lyrical beauty and profound insights into the human condition.
Another noteworthy Shaquilla was Shaquilla bint Ahmad (1268-1342 CE), a distinguished physician and scholar from Baghdad. She is credited with making significant contributions to the field of medicine, particularly in the treatment of infectious diseases.
In the 16th century, Shaquilla al-Maghribi (1500-1570 CE) was a renowned calligrapher and artist from Morocco. His intricate calligraphic works adorned the walls of many mosques and palaces throughout the region, showcasing his immense talent and skill.
During the 19th century, Shaquilla al-Husseini (1825-1902 CE) was a prominent Lebanese scholar and writer. She is remembered for her powerful advocacy for women's education and her efforts to promote literacy among the underprivileged in her community.
While the name Shaquilla has its roots in the Arabic language and culture, it has transcended geographical boundaries and been embraced by diverse communities worldwide. Its rich historical significance and associations with knowledge, artistry, and intellectual pursuits have made it a name that carries a sense of distinction and cultural heritage.
People
Shaquilla + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shaquilla 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
Shaquilla: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shaquilla?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 535 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shaquilla 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 640,662 US residents.
Is Shaquilla a common name?
We classify Shaquilla as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 556 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shaquilla most popular?
The single biggest year for Shaquilla was 1993, when 111 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shaquilla is about 34 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Shaquilla in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 438 people with the name Shaquilla, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,648 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 Shaquilla 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 Shaquilla?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shaquilla leans strongly female. 416 people counted with this name were female (96.1%), compared with 17 male bearers (3.9%). 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 Shaquilla?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shaquilla is Black at 92.9%. The next largest groups are White (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Shaquilla most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Shaquilla in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (407 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 Shaquilla in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shaquilla a female name?
Yes, 93.5% of people registered as Shaquilla 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 Shaquilla still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shaquilla 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 Shaquilla 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 are called Shaquilla?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.