Taila
A feminine name of Indian origin meaning "oil" or "olive oil".
Name Census estimates that about 276 living Americans carry the first name Taila. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Taila today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Taila births was 1995 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Taila. 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 Taila with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
276
~ 1 in 1,241,864 Americans
Peak year
1995
15 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2023 SSA rank
#12,058
Tracked since 1989
Census
Taila in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 278 people with the first name Taila, which placed it at #31,017 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
#31,017
National first-name rank
People counted
278
278 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
38.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Taila
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Taila is Black at 38.5%. The next largest groups are White (34.5%) and Hispanic (11.5%). 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 Taila 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 Taila at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American38.5% · 107
- White34.5% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino11.5% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.5% · 18
- Two or more races6.1% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.9% · 8
Popularity
Taila: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Taila from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 99 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
Taila 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 Taila 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 Taila
The name Taila has its origins in the Sanskrit language of ancient India, with roots dating back to the 1st millennium BCE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Taila," which means "oil" or "ghee." This name is believed to have been given to individuals associated with the production, trade, or consumption of oils and ghee, which were integral parts of various rituals, ceremonies, and daily life in ancient India.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Taila can be found in ancient Hindu texts, such as the Vedas and Upanishads. These sacred scriptures contain references to individuals bearing this name, often in the context of religious practices and rituals involving the use of oils and ghee.
One of the most notable historical figures with the name Taila was Taila the Grammarian, a renowned Sanskrit scholar who lived in the 7th century CE. He is celebrated for his work on the grammar and linguistic structure of the Sanskrit language, which played a pivotal role in preserving and propagating the rich literary and cultural heritage of ancient India.
In the realm of spirituality, Taila Upanishad, a minor Upanishad of Hinduism, is believed to have been composed between the 5th and 8th centuries CE. This text delves into the philosophical and metaphysical aspects of the universe, drawing upon the symbolism and significance of oils and ghee in various rituals.
During the medieval period, the name Taila was often associated with individuals involved in the production and trade of oils and ghee. One such figure was Taila the Merchant, a renowned trader from the 12th century CE who established a flourishing business network spanning across the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia.
Another notable individual bearing the name Taila was Taila the Poet, a celebrated literary figure from the 16th century CE. He was renowned for his compositions in various poetic forms, often drawing inspiration from the natural world and the intricate symbolism associated with oils and ghee in Hindu mythology and philosophy.
Throughout history, the name Taila has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including scholars, merchants, poets, and spiritual leaders. Despite its ancient origins, the name continues to be used in various parts of South Asia, carrying with it the rich cultural and historical significance of its Sanskrit roots.
People
Taila + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Taila as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with T
Other first names starting with T with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Taila: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Taila?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 276 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Taila 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 1,241,864 US residents.
Is Taila a common name?
We classify Taila as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 282 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Taila most popular?
The single biggest year for Taila was 1995, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Taila is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Taila in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 278 people with the name Taila, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #31,017 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 Taila 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 Taila?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Taila leans strongly female. 275 people counted with this name were female (97.9%), compared with 6 male bearers (2.1%). 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 Taila?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Taila is Black at 38.5%. The next largest groups are White (34.5%) and Hispanic (11.5%). 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 Taila most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Taila in the 2020 Census, accounting for 38.5% (107 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 Taila in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Taila a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Taila 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 Taila still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Taila 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 Taila 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 common is the name Taila?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Taila at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.