Girls' name · since 1898
Leela
Leela has 4,545 recorded births since 1898 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 2016 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #2,739 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,282 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 4,545
- born since 1898
- 2010s
- peak decade
4,545 babies have been named Leela since 1898, making it today's #1282 girls' name.
Leela has 4,545 recorded births among girls since 1898, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1282 as of the latest data, more common than 93% of girls, busiest in the 2010s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1898 to 2025.
- #2,739 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #1,282 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 4,545 born since 1898
- 2010s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Leela ranks #2,739 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,282 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 4,545 born since 1898, peaking in the 2010s.
- #2,739 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,282 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 4,545
- born since 1898
- 2010s
- peak decade
Leela's 4,545 recorded births place it above 96.21% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
27 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Leela compares
4,545 Top 15% higher than 85% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Leela's all-time total is 12x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Leela | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 4,545 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 232 | 21 | 19,840 |
Leela's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Leela's SSA record in two at 1990 and the more recent half accounts for 92% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 8%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1898, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 2016 peak of 232, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Leela popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1898–2025
- Peak year (2016)
- 232
- Annual births at peak, across 128 years of records
Leela by decade
2010s is the heaviest window (2,034 births, 45% of the file).
2010s was Leela's strongest decade.
2,034 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 45% of all-time use.
Leela births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1890s 5
1890s
5 births
- 1910s 5
1910s
5 births
- 1920s 5
1920s
5 births
- 1940s 16
1940s
16 births
- 1950s 17
1950s
17 births
- 1960s 47
1960s
47 births
- 1970s 109
1970s
109 births
- 1980s 158
1980s
158 births
- 1990s 194
1990s
194 births
- 2000s
2000s
864 births
- 2010s
2010s
2,034 births
- 2020s
2020s
1,091 births
What this shows Peak: 2010s at 2,034 births (45% of all-time use).
How Leela compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Leela's total volume
Leela by state
Where Leela concentrates geographically, total births since 1898
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 655 | 14.4% |
| #2 | New York | | 336 | 7.4% |
| #3 | Texas | | 288 | 6.3% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 171 | 3.8% |
| #5 | Florida | | 141 | 3.1% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 121 | 2.7% |
| #7 | Massachusetts | | 97 | 2.1% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 95 | 2.1% |
655 of 4,545 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 27 reporting states.
Leela appears in 27 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Leela's data
- Leela's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (2,034 total births) through the 2020s (1,091) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- California records the most Leelas (655 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Leela
Nearby Names Like Leela
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Leela
Compare Leela side by side: Leela vs Lee Leela vs Leeann Leela vs Leena
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Leela
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Leela: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2016)
Similar record span (~127 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1898–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Leela draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.