Yalena
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly related to the Greek word 'helene' meaning "shining light".
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the first name Yalena. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yalena today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yalena births was 2016 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yalena. 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
209
~ 1 in 1,639,973 Americans
Peak year
2016
15 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,205
Tracked since 2001
Popularity
Yalena: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yalena from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 102 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Yalena remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yalena 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 Yalena 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 Yalena
The given name Yalena is believed to have its origins in the ancient Slavic languages, tracing back to the 9th or 10th century AD. It is derived from the Proto-Slavic root word "yalen," which means "deer" or "doe." The name likely evolved as a reference to the graceful and gentle nature associated with these animals.
In its earliest recorded forms, the name was spelled variations such as "Yelena," "Yelina," or "Yalina." These variations reflect the influence of different Slavic dialects and regional pronunciations across Eastern and Central Europe during the medieval period.
While there are no definitive historical references to the name Yalena in ancient texts or religious scriptures, some scholars suggest that it may have been used as a diminutive or affectionate form of the more common Slavic name "Elena" or "Yelena."
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Yalena was a noble woman from the Principality of Halych-Volhynia (modern-day Western Ukraine and Eastern Poland) in the 13th century. Unfortunately, little is known about her life or achievements.
In the 16th century, a woman named Yalena Karpinska (c. 1520-1580) was a prominent figure in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. She was a noblewoman and landowner known for her philanthropic work and support of education in her region.
During the 17th century, Yalena Radziwill (1605-1672) was a prominent member of the powerful Radziwill family in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. She played a significant role in the political and cultural affairs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
In the 19th century, Yalena Pávlova (1849-1924) was a Russian ballerina and teacher who achieved fame as a principal dancer with the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg. She is considered one of the most celebrated ballerinas of her time and a pioneer of the Russian ballet tradition.
Another notable figure with the name Yalena was Yalena Blavatskaya (1831-1891), a Russian philosopher and co-founder of the Theosophical Society. She was a highly influential figure in the development of modern esoteric and occult movements, and her writings on theosophy and ancient wisdom had a significant impact on Western esotericism.
People
Yalena + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yalena 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
Yalena: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yalena?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 209 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yalena 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 1,639,973 US residents.
Is Yalena a common name?
We classify Yalena as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 211 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yalena most popular?
The single biggest year for Yalena was 2016, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yalena is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Yalena a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yalena 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.