Twila
Feminine
Twila is an American name of the nineteenth century with no documented parent and two attractive candidates: the English word twilight, and the French étoile, a star.
How old is the name Twila?
Twila first appears in US birth records in 1890 — 135 years ago. The typical Twila alive today was born around 1952, making them about 73 years old. About 7,000 people named Twila are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Twila most popular?
Twila peaked in 1934, reaching #463 nationally. Today it ranks #3459, 2,996 places below that high. See the whole 1934 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Twila
Ours, offered as ours. Twila belongs to a large group of American women's names from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that exist in the census and in no dictionary — Twila, Verda, Zola, Ardith. Some are inherited, some are borrowed, and a great many were simply made by families who liked the sound. Twila is among the best of them: two syllables, an unusual opening consonant cluster that English rarely puts at the front of a name, and nothing at all behind it.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source is established. The two accounts most often offered are the English twilight, which fits the sound, and the French étoile, a star, which some families in Louisiana and the Midwest have claimed. Neither is documented, and the name may simply have been coined.
Pronouncing Twila
TWY-lah
Two syllables, first stressed. There is little variation.
Nicknames for Twila
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
- 1890
- Most girls named
- 1960304 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #463reached in 1934
- Change vs 2022
- +29.4%44 in 2025, from 34
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.
Twila in other languages
Strongest US states over the last decade: Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana.
Twilas among us
people named Twila are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 36,529 born in 2025 was named Twila
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Twila
- #3459
- Twila on the 2025 chart
- #860
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Twila went to 44 girls in 2025, but Twyla is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 100, which makes it the 860th most-given girls’ name of the year — 2,599 places above the chart.
- Twyla56
- Twila44
About 1 girl in 16,073 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 36,529 for Twila 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
The Idell test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Twila's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Idell climbed just as high around 1910, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Idell's path sketches the road Twila is walking now.
Twila 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 Twila is headed
Twila looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 20% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
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.
Twila beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Twila in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Genuine nineteenth-century American history under its own name.
- The tw opening is rare enough to make the name distinct.
- Five letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- There is no documented meaning, and both of the ones offered are guesses.
- It is close to Twyla, which is the other common spelling.
- It reads as a name of a particular era to older Americans.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Twila to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Twila
Feminine · #3459 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Twilas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 7,000 people named Twila are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Twila?
- Twila is one of 2 recorded spellings. Twyla is the more common one — 56 births in 2025 against 44 for Twila.
- How popular is the name Twila in 2025?
- Twila ranks #3459 among US girl names in 2025, with 44 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Twila?
- About 1 in every 36,529 US girls born in 2025 was named Twila — 44 in all.
- Will my child share the name Twila with classmates?
- Twila will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Twila
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Janey#3459 · Devon#3459 · Nitya#3459 · Zayah#3459 · Lively#3459 · Kynsley#3459 · Anaiya#3459 · Ena#3459
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Twila? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Twila and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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