Girls' name · since 1951
Mala
698 babies named Mala in U.S. Social Security records since 1951, with the highest year being 1956. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #9,538 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #9,565 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 698
- born since 1951
- 1950s
- peak decade
Yes -- Mala is the #9565 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 698 recorded since 1951.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Mala has been recorded 698 times among girls since 1951, currently ranked #9565 nationally and more common than 45% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1950s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1951 to 2025.
- #9,538 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #9,565 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 698 born since 1951
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Mala ranks #9,538 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #9,565 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 698 born since 1951, peaking in the 1950s.
- #9,538 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #9,565 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 698
- born since 1951
- 1950s
- peak decade
Mala's 698 recorded births place it above 86.81% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
The state file records this name in 2 jurisdictions, led by New York.
How Mala compares
698 Top 39% higher than 61% 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
Mala's all-time total is 86% above the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Mala | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 698 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 51 | 21 | 19,840 |
Mala's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Mala splits its recorded history at 1986: 39% of all births land in the more recent half, 61% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1997 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1956 peak of 51 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Mala popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1951–2025
- Peak year (1956)
- 51
- Annual births at peak, across 75 years of records
Mala by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (175 births, 25% of the file).
1950s was Mala's strongest decade.
175 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.
Mala births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1950s
1950s
175 births
- 1960s
1960s
128 births
- 1970s
1970s
83 births
- 1980s
1980s
70 births
- 1990s 60
1990s
60 births
- 2000s 31
2000s
31 births
- 2010s
2010s
99 births
- 2020s 52
2020s
52 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 175 births (25% of all-time use).
How Mala 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 Mala's total volume
Mala by state
Where Mala concentrates geographically, total births since 1951
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 30 | 4.3% |
| #2 | California | | 5 | 0.7% |
30 of 698 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 2 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Mala? ▼
Where does Mala sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Mala most popular? ▼
Where is Mala most popular? ▼
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What names are similar to Mala? ▼
What to do with Mala's data
- Mala's decade-level peak was the 1950s (175 total births); usage has since declined to 52 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Malas (30 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Mala
Nearby Names Like Mala
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Mala
Compare Mala side by side: Mala vs Mallory Mala vs Malia Mala vs Malinda
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Mala
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Mala: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1956)
Similar record span (~74 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, 1951–2025 (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 Mala 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.