Girls' name · since 1880
Lela
43,005 babies named Lela in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1921. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #662 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,368 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 43,005
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Yes -- Lela is the #2368 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 43,005 recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Lela has been recorded 43,005 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #2368 nationally and more common than 86% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #662 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #2,368 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 43,005 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Lela ranks #662 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,368 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 43,005 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #662 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,368 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 43,005
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Lela's 43,005 recorded births place it above 99.08% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
42 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Lela compares
43,005 Top 4% higher than 96% 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
Lela's all-time total is 114x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Lela | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 43,005 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 907 | 21 | 19,840 |
Lela's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Lela's full recorded timeline at 1953, 21% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 79% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1994, with just 52 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1921 peak of 907 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Lela popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1921)
- 907
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Lela popularity over time - boys
68 total births recorded since 1886 (Lela as boys' name)
Lela by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (7,840 births, 18% of the file).
1920s was Lela's strongest decade.
7,840 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 18% of all-time use.
Lela births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 1,915
1880s
1,915 births
- 1890s
1890s
3,892 births
- 1900s
1900s
4,473 births
- 1910s
1910s
7,007 births
- 1920s
1920s
7,840 births
- 1930s
1930s
4,619 births
- 1940s
1940s
3,362 births
- 1950s 2,382
1950s
2,382 births
- 1960s 1,478
1960s
1,478 births
- 1970s 1,068
1970s
1,068 births
- 1980s 864
1980s
864 births
- 1990s 687
1990s
687 births
- 2000s 1,380
2000s
1,380 births
- 2010s 1,467
2010s
1,467 births
- 2020s 571
2020s
571 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 7,840 births (18% of all-time use).
How Lela 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 Lela's total volume
Lela by state
Where Lela concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 3,304 | 7.7% |
| #2 | Alabama | | 1,875 | 4.4% |
| #3 | North Carolina | | 1,706 | 4.0% |
| #4 | Mississippi | | 1,673 | 3.9% |
| #5 | Tennessee | | 1,592 | 3.7% |
| #6 | Oklahoma | | 1,466 | 3.4% |
| #7 | Illinois | | 1,446 | 3.4% |
| #8 | Missouri | | 1,398 | 3.3% |
3,304 of 43,005 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 42 reporting states.
Lela appears in 42 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Lela? ▼
Where does Lela sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Lela most popular? ▼
Where is Lela most popular? ▼
How long has the name Lela been used? ▼
What names are similar to Lela? ▼
What to do with Lela's data
- Lela's decade-level peak was the 1920s (7,840 total births); usage has since declined to 571 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Lelas (3,304 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Lela
Nearby Names Like Lela
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Lela
Compare Lela side by side: Lela vs Lelia Lela vs Lelah Lela vs Lelani
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Lela
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Lela: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1921)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Lela 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.