Xylia
Of Greek origin, representing a person associated with wood or forests.
Name Census estimates that about 516 living Americans carry the first name Xylia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Xylia today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Xylia births was 2014 (41 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Xylia. 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
516
~ 1 in 664,253 Americans
Peak year
2014
41 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,744
Tracked since 1994
Popularity
Xylia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Xylia from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 214 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Xylia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Xylia 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 Xylia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Xylias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, North Carolina, Texas recorded the most babies named Xylia, while Texas, North Carolina, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Xylia
The name Xylia is of Greek origin, derived from the word "xylon," meaning "wood" or "tree." It is believed to have emerged during the classical period of ancient Greece, around the 5th century BCE.
Xylia was initially used as a feminine name, often associated with the concept of nature, growth, and strength. In Greek mythology, there are references to dryads, tree nymphs who were believed to be the embodiment of specific trees or woodlands.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Xylia can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who mentions a woman named Xylia from the city of Ephesus in his work "The Histories," written around 440 BCE.
During the Hellenistic period, which spanned from the 4th to the 1st century BCE, the name Xylia gained popularity among the Greek-speaking populations of the Mediterranean region. Several notable women from this era bore the name, including Xylia of Corinth (c. 300 BCE), a renowned physician and scholar.
In the Byzantine era, which lasted from the 4th to the 15th century CE, the name Xylia continued to be used, particularly among the Greek-speaking populations of the Byzantine Empire. One notable figure was Xylia Kantakouzene (c. 1345 - 1394), a member of the Byzantine imperial family.
Throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the name Xylia remained relatively uncommon in most parts of Europe. However, it experienced a resurgence in popularity during the 18th and 19th centuries, coinciding with the Romantic movement's interest in classical Greek culture and literature.
Notable individuals named Xylia from this period include Xylia Karavia (1790 - 1856), a Greek writer and intellectual who played a significant role in the Greek War of Independence, and Xylia Vaporidou (1843 - 1907), a pioneering Greek educator and feminist.
In more recent times, the name Xylia has been used across various cultures, though it remains relatively rare. Some notable individuals with this name include Xylia Papadopoulou (1915 - 2007), a Greek actress and theater director, and Xylia Ghika (1936 - 2022), a Greek artist and sculptor.
People
Xylia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Xylia 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
Xylia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Xylia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 516 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Xylia 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 664,253 US residents.
Is Xylia a common name?
We classify Xylia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 521 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Xylia most popular?
The single biggest year for Xylia was 2014, when 41 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Xylia is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Xylia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Xylia 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.
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.