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Eila

Feminine · “terebinth tree”

1912high 2020
#1777 in the U.S.stepping back from its peak
falling113 girls in 2025

Eila is a Finnish name of uncertain origin, and it is also read through the Hebrew Elah — a terebinth tree, the valley where David fought Goliath.

How old is the name Eila?

Eila first appears in US birth records in 1912 — 113 years ago. The typical Eila is a kid of about 7 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,700 people named Eila are estimated to be alive in the US today.

When was the name Eila most popular?

Eila peaked in 2020, reaching #1398 nationally. Today it ranks #1777, 379 places below that high. See the whole 2020 chart.

Compare this nameMore “E” names

Lists built from the same records:

I

Where it comes from

The story of Eila

The valley of Elah is where David meets Goliath in 1 Samuel, and the terebinth that names it is a real Mediterranean tree. Separately, Eila is a standard Finnish name that peaked there in the mid-twentieth century. Both routes brought it to America, where it appears in the registers and is in current use.

Meaningscholars disagree

terebinth tree; earth

Several routes. The Finnish Eila is of unrecovered origin, possibly a form of Helena. The Hebrew elah means 'terebinth' or 'oak' and names the valley of Elah. A third reading treats it as a respelling of Ayla or Isla. None is dominant.

How the name formed

  1. elah
  2. Eila

Related forms: Eila · Elah · Ayla

Pronouncing Eila

AY-lah

Two syllables, stress on the first. Finnish says it the same way; some bearers use EE-lah.

Nicknames for Eila

Moderate

EiThe front sound alone, used inside families rather than generally
LalaA reduplication of the back, warm and used inside families
II

What the data says

The long climb, and where it stands now

GIRLS NAMED · 1912–202515678015611319122025

US babies named Eila per year from 1912 to 2025
AVERAGE RANK BY DECADE#1#10#100#1000#13981910s2020s

The same years in position rather than babies

First recorded
1912
Most girls named
2020156 — the highest on record
Peak rank
#1398reached in 2020
Change vs 2024
+10.8%113 in 2025, from 102
Eila is past its biggest year. The count topped out at 156 girls in 2020 and has eased 28% since — the slow half of a naming cycle, where a name stays familiar while getting steadily less common. The move since 2024: up 10.8%.

Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.

Eila in other languages

The same name elsewhere

  • Eila in Finnish — same name
  • Elah in Hebrew — related form
  • Ayla in English — related form

Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.

Eilas among us

1,700

people named Eila are estimated to be alive in the US today

About 1 girl in 14,224 born in 2025 was named Eila

Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method

Spellings of Eila

#1777
Eila on the 2025 chart
#768
counting every spelling

The SSA counts spellings, not names. Eila went to 113 girls in 2025, but Eyla, Eilah and Eylah are the same name said out loud. Together the 4 spellings went to 192, which makes it the 768th most-given girls’ name of the year — 1,009 places above the chart.

  • Eila113
  • Eyla45
  • Eilah18
  • Eylah16

About 1 girl in 8,371 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 14,224 for Eila itself.

Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method

III

Is it right for you

The Jessalyn test

Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Eila's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Jessalyn climbed just as high around 1999, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Jessalyn's path sketches the road Eila is walking now.

40%chance Eila will feel “very 2020s” by 2040
Eila, aligned on its peakJessalyn· peak 1999not yet written
#1#10#100#1000peak-40 yrs+30 yrsJessalyn · #4309Eila today
Eila today is about where Jessalyn stood in 2004 — 5 years past a #1398-sized peak. By 2019, Jessalyn had settled around #2150.
Ages quietlysteadyDates fast

Eila sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.

A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored

Where Eila is headed

19122030

US babies named Eila per year, 1912 to 2025, with a projection to 2030

Eila should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.

Steady-4% by 2030projected around #1,934 in 2030

Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.

A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.

Eila beside its neighbors

The names ranked closest to Eila in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.

Eilathis name113#1777Adore113#1777Tess113#1777Arizbeth113#1777Jalayah113#1777

US girls given each name in 2025.

The trade-off

Practical strengths
  • The terebinth reading is concrete and the valley of Elah is a real place.
  • It is a genuine and long-used Finnish name.
  • Four letters, two syllables, and never misheard.
What to consider
  • The origin is genuinely split several ways.
  • The first vowel splits between two readings.
  • Ayla, Isla and Eila are all close enough to cause confusion.

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Eila

Feminine · #1777 in the U.S.

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Frequently asked

How many Eilas are there in the world?
No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,700 people named Eila are estimated to be alive in the US today.
How do you spell Eila?
Eila is the most-used spelling in US records — 113 of the 192 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Eyla, Eilah and Eylah.
How popular is the name Eila in 2025?
Eila ranks #1777 among US girl names in 2025, with 113 babies given the name.
How rare is the name Eila?
About 1 in every 14,224 US girls born in 2025 was named Eila — 113 in all.
Will my child share the name Eila with classmates?
Eila will almost certainly be the only one in school.

Ranked beside Eila

Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.

Adore#1777 · Tess#1777 · Arizbeth#1777 · Jalayah#1777 · Katarina#1777 · Cosette#1777 · Yesly#1777 · Ronnie#1777

Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Eila? See the current top 100.

Choosing between Eila and another name?

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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology

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