Zaylia
A feminine name meaning "rain" or "shower" in Arabic.
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the first name Zaylia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zaylia today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zaylia births was 2019 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zaylia. 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 Zaylia with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
139
~ 1 in 2,465,859 Americans
Peak year
2019
14 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,102
Tracked since 2009
Popularity
Zaylia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zaylia 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 81 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zaylia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zaylia 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 Zaylia 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 Zaylia
The name Zaylia is a unique and relatively modern name with uncertain origins. It is believed to have derived from a combination of the Hebrew name Zayla, meaning "shadow" or "shelter," and the Greek name Lia, meaning "bearer of good news."
Some scholars trace the roots of Zaylia back to the ancient Sumerian city of Zabala, which was known for its thriving trade and cultural influences. However, there is no concrete evidence to support this theory, and the name's true origins remain shrouded in mystery.
The earliest recorded use of the name Zaylia can be found in a medieval Italian text from the 13th century, where it was used to refer to a young woman from a noble family. It is unclear whether this was a real person or a fictional character, but the name's appearance in this text suggests that it was in use, albeit rarely, during that time period.
Throughout history, there have been a few notable individuals who bore the name Zaylia. One of the earliest was Zaylia de Montfort (1210-1275), a French noblewoman who played a significant role in the Albigensian Crusade. Another was Zaylia Veneziano (1542-1612), an Italian artist and painter who was known for her intricate religious frescoes.
In the 19th century, Zaylia Hawthorne (1835-1899) was an American writer and social activist who advocated for women's rights and the abolition of slavery. She was a contemporary of the famous author Nathaniel Hawthorne, though they were not related.
More recently, Zaylia Kaplan (1921-2003) was a British-born Israeli archaeologist who made significant contributions to the study of ancient ceramics and the history of the Levant region.
While the name Zaylia has gained some popularity in recent years, particularly in certain regions, it remains a relatively uncommon and unique name with a fascinating, though largely unknown, history and origins.
People
Zaylia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zaylia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zaylia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zaylia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 139 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zaylia 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 2,465,859 US residents.
Is Zaylia a common name?
We classify Zaylia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 140 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zaylia most popular?
The single biggest year for Zaylia was 2019, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zaylia is about 8 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 Zaylia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zaylia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zaylia 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 Zaylia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zaylia 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 Zaylia 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 named Zaylia?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.