Starla
A feminine name meaning "star" of English origin.
Name Census estimates that about 7,239 living Americans carry the first name Starla. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Starla today is around 44 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Starla births was 1980 (243 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Starla. 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 Starla with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
7.2K
~ 1 in 47,348 Americans
Peak year
1980
243 babies that year
Average age
44
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,801
Tracked since 1942
Census
Starla in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 6,519 people with the first name Starla, which placed it at #3,273 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
#3,273
National first-name rank
People counted
6.5K
6,519 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
2.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
74.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Starla
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Starla is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Hispanic (5.9%). 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 Starla 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 Starla at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.6% · 4,861
- Black or African American9.9% · 645
- Hispanic or Latino5.9% · 385
- Two or more races5.5% · 361
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 197
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 70
Popularity
Starla: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Starla from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 1,813 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Starla 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 Starla during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Starlas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 31 states and territories. California, Texas, Oklahoma recorded the most babies named Starla, while Wyoming, New York, Utah recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 147 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Starla
The name Starla is an English feminine given name derived from the word "star." It is believed to have originated in the United States in the early 20th century, possibly as a combination of the words "star" and the common feminine name ending "-la."
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Starla can be traced back to 1908 when it appeared in a newspaper article from Missouri. However, it did not gain widespread popularity until the mid-20th century, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s.
While the name Starla does not have any direct historical or religious references, it is often associated with the celestial motif of stars, which have held significance in various cultures throughout history. Stars have been revered as symbols of guidance, hope, and beauty, which may have contributed to the appeal of this name.
Notable individuals who have borne the name Starla include Starla Benford (born in 1955), an American actress known for her roles in television shows like "The Jeffersons" and "What's Happening!!" Starla Greer (born in 1979) is an American model and actress who has appeared in various television shows and films.
Another notable Starla is Starla Vaughns Dortch (born in 1972), an American lawyer and civil rights activist. She has been involved in various legal battles related to voting rights and racial discrimination. Starla Lewis (born in 1966) is a Canadian country music singer and songwriter who has released several albums and singles.
Starla Vaughns Dortch, an American lawyer and civil rights activist, was born in 1972 and has been involved in various legal battles related to voting rights and racial discrimination, making significant contributions to the fight for equality and justice.
It's worth noting that while the name Starla gained popularity in the mid-20th century, its usage has declined in recent decades. However, its celestial connotation and unique sound continue to make it a distinctive and intriguing choice for parents seeking a name with a touch of celestial whimsy.
People
Starla + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Starla 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
Starla: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Starla?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 7,239 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Starla 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 47,348 US residents.
Is Starla a common name?
We classify Starla as "Rare". It ranks above 97.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8,206 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Starla most popular?
The single biggest year for Starla was 1980, when 243 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Starla is about 44 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Starla in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 6,519 people with the name Starla, or 2.16 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #3,273 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 Starla 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 Starla?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Starla appears almost entirely female. Of the 6,520 people counted with this name, 99.9% 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 Starla?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Starla is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Hispanic (5.9%). 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 Starla most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Starla in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.6% (4,861 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 Starla in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Starla a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Starla 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 Starla still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Starla 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 Starla 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 share the name Starla?
Want to know how many people share the name Starla? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.