Yalini
A feminine name of Indian origin meaning "wave" or "lightning".
Name Census estimates that about 62 living Americans carry the first name Yalini. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yalini today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yalini births was 2017 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yalini. 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 Yalini with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Yalini. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
62
~ 1 in 5,528,296 Americans
Peak year
2017
12 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2022 SSA rank
#17,645
Tracked since 2014
Popularity
Yalini: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yalini from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 50 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yalini 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 Yalini 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 Yalini
The name Yalini is believed to have its origins in the Tamil language spoken in parts of India and Sri Lanka. It is derived from the Tamil word "yal", which means "mare" or "female horse". The name gained popularity in the ancient Tamil kingdoms that flourished in southern India and parts of Sri Lanka, particularly during the Chola and Pallava dynasties between the 3rd and 13th centuries.
In Hindu mythology, there are references to a celestial nymph named Yalini, who was known for her beauty and grace. She is mentioned in ancient Tamil literature such as the Sangam poetry, which dates back to the early centuries of the common era. The name's association with this mythological figure likely contributed to its widespread use among the Tamil population.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Yalini can be found in the inscriptions of the Chola king Rajaraja Chola I, who ruled in the 11th century. The name appears in royal records and temple inscriptions from that period, suggesting its use among the nobility and aristocracy of the time.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Yalini. One of the most famous was Yalini Purnima Devi (1821-1898), a renowned Indian dancer and courtesan who was renowned for her skill in the traditional Bharatanatyam dance form. She was a celebrated artist in the court of the Maharaja of Travancore during the 19th century.
Another historical figure with the name Yalini was Yalini Raghupathi (1865-1932), a pioneering Indian feminist and social reformer. She was actively involved in the women's rights movement and worked towards improving the education and status of women in India during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
In the field of literature, Yalini Thanjavur (1901-1978) was a renowned Tamil writer and poet. She was a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award, one of India's highest literary honors, for her contributions to Tamil literature.
Yalini Rajagopal (1932-2004) was a distinguished Indian classical dancer and choreographer. She was a leading exponent of the Bharatanatyam dance form and played a significant role in its revival and popularization in the 20th century.
Yalini Thambiah (born 1956) is a Sri Lankan writer and academic who has authored several novels and works of fiction exploring themes of identity, displacement, and cultural conflicts. Her works have received critical acclaim and have been translated into multiple languages.
People
Yalini + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yalini 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
Yalini: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yalini?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 62 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yalini 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 5,528,296 US residents.
Is Yalini a common name?
We classify Yalini as "Very Rare". It ranks above 57.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 62 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yalini most popular?
The single biggest year for Yalini was 2017, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yalini is about 9 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 Yalini in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yalini a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yalini 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 Yalini still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yalini 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 Yalini 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 share the name Yalini?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.