Yahayra
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "superior", "noble", or "excellent".
Name Census estimates that about 200 living Americans carry the first name Yahayra. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yahayra today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yahayra births was 1996 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yahayra. 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
200
~ 1 in 1,713,772 Americans
Peak year
1996
17 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2015 SSA rank
#18,992
Tracked since 1982
Census
Yahayra in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 256 people with the first name Yahayra, which placed it at #32,700 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
#32,700
National first-name rank
People counted
256
256 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
99.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yahayra
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Yahayra is Hispanic at 99.6%. The next largest groups are White (0.4%). 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 Yahayra 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 Yahayra at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino99.6% · 255
- White0.4% · 1
Popularity
Yahayra: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yahayra from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 116 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yahayra 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 Yahayra during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yahayras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Illinois, Texas recorded the most babies named Yahayra, while Texas, Illinois, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Yahayra
The name Yahayra has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, dating back to the 7th century CE. It is believed to be derived from the Arabic word "hayra," which means "surprise" or "astonishment." This name was likely given to children as a way to express the parents' joy and wonder at the birth of their child.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Yahayra can be found in the historical records of the Umayyad Caliphate, which ruled a vast territory spanning from modern-day Spain to Central Asia between 661 and 750 CE. During this period, the name was particularly popular among the Arab nobility and ruling classes.
In the centuries that followed, the name Yahayra continued to be used throughout the Islamic world, appearing in various historical texts and records. One notable individual who bore this name was Yahayra bint al-Hasan, a renowned scholar and poet who lived in Baghdad during the 9th century CE. She was celebrated for her contributions to Arabic literature and her mastery of various poetic forms.
Another prominent figure associated with the name Yahayra was Yahayra al-Nabulusi, a 17th-century Sufi mystic and philosopher from Damascus. His writings on Islamic spirituality and metaphysics had a profound influence on the intellectual and religious landscape of the Ottoman Empire.
In the 19th century, a notable bearer of the name Yahayra was Yahayra al-Sudani, a Sudanese military leader and rebel who led a revolt against the Ottoman-Egyptian rule in Sudan. Her struggle for independence and resistance against foreign occupation earned her a place in the annals of Sudanese history.
Fast forward to the 20th century, one of the most famous individuals with the name Yahayra was Yahayra Ayyad, a renowned Egyptian actress and singer who graced the silver screen and stage with her captivating performances. Born in 1924, she was a cultural icon and a beloved figure in the Arab world, known for her versatility and her ability to portray a wide range of characters.
Throughout its rich history, the name Yahayra has been borne by countless individuals from diverse backgrounds and walks of life. While its origins can be traced back to the Arabian Peninsula, it has transcended geographical boundaries and cultural barriers, serving as a testament to the enduring legacy of Arabic names and their influence on global cultures.
People
Yahayra + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yahayra as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yahayra: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yahayra?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 200 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yahayra 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 1,713,772 US residents.
Is Yahayra a common name?
We classify Yahayra as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 204 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yahayra most popular?
The single biggest year for Yahayra was 1996, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yahayra is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Yahayra in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 256 people with the name Yahayra, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #32,700 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 Yahayra 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 Yahayra?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Yahayra appears almost entirely female. Of the 259 people counted with this name, 99.2% 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 Yahayra?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Yahayra is Hispanic at 99.6%. The next largest groups are White (0.4%). 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 Yahayra most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Yahayra in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.6% (255 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 Yahayra in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yahayra a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yahayra 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 Yahayra still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yahayra 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 Yahayra 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 Yahayra?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Yahayra on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.