Xaiya
A feminine name of Thai origin meaning "victorious".
Name Census estimates that about 48 living Americans carry the first name Xaiya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Xaiya today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Xaiya births was 2021 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Xaiya. 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 Xaiya with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Xaiya. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
48
~ 1 in 7,140,715 Americans
Peak year
2021
11 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,490
Tracked since 2018
Popularity
Xaiya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Xaiya from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 35 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Xaiya 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 Xaiya 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 Xaiya
The name Xaiya is believed to have originated from the ancient Sanskrit language of India, dating back to around the 5th century BCE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "xaiya," which translates to "light" or "illumination." This name was initially used by Hindu communities in the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Xaiya can be found in the Hindu religious text, the Mahabharata, where it was used to refer to a minor character. However, the name gained more prominence during the Gupta Empire period (320-550 CE), when several scholars and philosophers with the name Xaiya were documented.
In the 7th century CE, a renowned Buddhist monk named Xaiya Dharmakirti, who hailed from the region of present-day Bangladesh, made significant contributions to the study of logic and epistemology. His works, such as the "Pramanavarttika," had a lasting impact on Buddhist philosophy.
During the medieval period, the name Xaiya was also found in various regions of South and Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand. In the 12th century, Xaiya Anawrahta, a powerful ruler of the Pagan Kingdom in modern-day Myanmar, was instrumental in the spread of Theravada Buddhism in the region.
Moving further into history, the name Xaiya appeared in several Islamic texts and records from the 13th century onwards, particularly in regions influenced by Persian and Arabic cultures. One notable figure was Xaiya al-Din al-Hilli, a Persian scholar and poet who lived from 1211 to 1282 CE and was renowned for his contributions to Islamic jurisprudence.
In more recent times, the name Xaiya has been used across various cultures and communities, although it is relatively uncommon compared to its older historical usage. Some notable individuals with this name include Xaiya Malik, a Pakistani actress born in 1984, and Xaiya Vance, an American poet and writer born in 1968.
Despite its ancient roots and historical significance, the name Xaiya remains relatively rare in modern times, perhaps due to its unique spelling and pronunciation. However, its connection to concepts of light and illumination continues to make it a meaningful and intriguing choice for parents seeking names with rich cultural and linguistic origins.
People
Xaiya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Xaiya as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with X
Other first names starting with X with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Xaiya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Xaiya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 48 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Xaiya 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 7,140,715 US residents.
Is Xaiya a common name?
We classify Xaiya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 48 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Xaiya most popular?
The single biggest year for Xaiya was 2021, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Xaiya is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Xaiya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Xaiya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Xaiya 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 Xaiya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Xaiya 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 Xaiya 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Xaiya?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.