Zaila
Feminine
Zaila may be an Arabic word, a Somali port city, or a modern American coinage — and no source settles it.
How old is the name Zaila?
Zaila first appears in US birth records in 2000 — 25 years ago. The typical Zaila is a kid of about 6 — this name's wave is very recent. About 900 people named Zaila are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Zaila most popular?
Zaila peaked in 2023, reaching #1946 nationally. Today it ranks #2194, 248 places below that high. See the whole 2023 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Zaila
Our story of Zaila is a story of a sound with unproven parents. Zeila on the Somali coast was a major medieval trading port and gave its name to a whole region; an Arabic root has also been proposed. Meanwhile American naming had Za- fronts and -la endings in wide use through the 2000s — Zaila, Zayla, Kayla, Nyla. Which route a family took is not recorded, and no source establishes a meaning.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No established etymology. It has been linked to an Arabic root and to Zeila, a historic Somali port, and it may be a modern coinage on the Za- front and -la ending. None is documented as the source for American use. Honest sources leave it open.
Pronouncing Zaila
ZAY-luh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Zaila and Zayla are said identically.
Nicknames for Zaila
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
- 2000
- Most girls named
- 2023101 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1946reached in 2023
- Change vs 2024
- +33.3%84 in 2025, from 63
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.
Zaila in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Zayla in English — spelling variant
- Zaylah in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Zailas among us
people named Zaila are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 19,134 born in 2025 was named Zaila
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Zaila
- #2194
- Zaila on the 2025 chart
- #593
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Zaila went to 84 girls in 2025, but Zayla, Zaylah and Zailah and the rest below are the same name said out loud. Together the 5 spellings went to 396, which makes it the 593rd most-given girls’ name of the year — 1,601 places above the chart.
About 1 girl in 4,059 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 19,134 for Zaila 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 Noami test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Zaila's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Noami climbed just as high around 1925, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Noami's path sketches the road Zaila is walking now.
Zaila 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 Zaila is headed
Zaila looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 21% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low 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.
Zaila beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Zaila in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Zay is available as a short form with real currency.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- The Z front makes it immediately distinctive.
- There is no documented meaning.
- At least three spellings of the sound are in circulation.
- It will need spelling out every time.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Zaila
Feminine · #2194 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Zailas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Zaila are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Zaila?
- Zaila is one of 5 recorded spellings. Zayla is the more common one — 248 births in 2025 against 84 for Zaila.
- How popular is the name Zaila in 2025?
- Zaila ranks #2194 among US girl names in 2025, with 84 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Zaila?
- About 1 in every 19,134 US girls born in 2025 was named Zaila — 84 in all.
- Will my child share the name Zaila with classmates?
- Zaila will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Zaila
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Asia#2194 · Samiya#2194 · Addalyn#2194 · Caylee#2194 · Olympia#2194 · Janna#2194 · Aqsa#2194 · Annaleigh#2194
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Zaila? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Zaila and another name?
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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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