Ela
Feminine
Ela is a genuinely old English name — a Norman one, carried by a countess of Salisbury who founded an abbey and served as sheriff of Wiltshire in her own right.
How old is the name Ela?
Ela first appears in US birth records in 1887 — 138 years ago. The typical Ela is a kid of about 11 — this name's wave is very recent. About 2,500 people named Ela are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Ela most popular?
Ela peaked in 1903, reaching #931 nationally. Today it ranks #1561, 630 places below that high. See the whole 1903 chart.
Ela appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Ela
Ela of Salisbury inherited her father's earldom in 1196, founded Lacock Abbey, and served as high sheriff of Wiltshire — one of very few women to hold the office. The name faded in England but is current in Turkey, Poland and Israel, and it appears in the American registers rising through the 2010s from all those directions at once.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
The medieval English Ela is a Norman name of unrecovered origin, possibly a short form of a Germanic compound. Separately, the Turkish Ela means 'hazel', of eyes; the Polish Ela is a short form of Elżbieta; and the Hebrew Ela means 'oak' or 'terebinth'. Four unrelated names share the spelling.
Pronouncing Ela
EH-lah
Two syllables, stress on the first. Turkish and Polish say it the same way; some English speakers say EE-lah.
Nicknames for Ela
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1887
- Most girls named
- 2018150 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #931reached in 1903
- Change vs 2023
- +22.7%135 in 2025, from 110
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.
Ela in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Ela in Turkish — same name
- Ela in Polish — same name
- Elah in Hebrew — related form
- Ella in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Florida, New York.
Elas among us
people named Ela are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 11,906 born in 2025 was named Ela
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Ela
- #1561
- Ela on the 2025 chart
- #32
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Ela went to 135 girls in 2025, but Ella and Elah are the same name said out loud. Together the 4 spellings went to 6,028, which makes it the 32nd most-given girls’ name of the year — 1,529 places above the chart.
- Ella5,831
- Ela135
- Elah33
and 1 rarer spelling.
About 1 girl in 267 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 11,906 for Ela 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
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Ela 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 Ela is headed
Ela should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
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.
Ela beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Ela in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A genuinely remarkable medieval Englishwoman carries it.
- It is current in Turkish, Polish and Hebrew naming simultaneously.
- Three letters, two syllables, and never misheard.
- Four unrelated names share the spelling, so the meaning depends on the family.
- Ella is far commoner and will be substituted constantly.
- The first vowel splits between two readings.
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Ela
Feminine · #1561 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Elas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,500 people named Ela are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Ela?
- Ela is one of 3 recorded spellings. Ella is the more common one — 5,831 births in 2025 against 135 for Ela.
- How popular is the name Ela in 2025?
- Ela ranks #1561 among US girl names in 2025, with 135 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Ela?
- About 1 in every 11,906 US girls born in 2025 was named Ela — 135 in all.
- Will my child share the name Ela with classmates?
- Ela will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Ela
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Frida#1561 · Emori#1561 · Eliani#1561 · Kalina#1561 · Rayla#1561 · Kollins#1561 · Delia#1561 · Keeley#1561
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Ela? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Ela and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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