Girls' name · since 1979
Nala
6,138 babies named Nala in U.S. Social Security records since 1979, with the highest year being 2019. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #2,261 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #856 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 6,138
- born since 1979
- 2010s
- peak decade
Nala currently ranks #856 among girls' names in America, with 6,138 babies recorded since 1979.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nala has been recorded 6,138 times among girls since 1979, currently ranked #856 nationally and more common than 95% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 2010s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1979 to 2025.
- #2,261 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #856 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 6,138 born since 1979
- 2010s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nala ranks #2,261 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #856 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 6,138 born since 1979, peaking in the 2010s.
- #2,261 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #856 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 6,138
- born since 1979
- 2010s
- peak decade
Nala's 6,138 recorded births place it above 96.87% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
37 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Nala compares
6,138 Top 12% higher than 88% 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
Nala's all-time total is 16x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Nala | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 6,138 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 428 | 21 | 19,840 |
Nala's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Nala splits its recorded history at 2009: 83% of all births land in the more recent half, 17% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1979 (5 births) -- compare that against the 2019 peak of 428 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Nala popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1979–2025
- Peak year (2019)
- 428
- Annual births at peak, across 47 years of records
Nala by decade
2010s is the heaviest window (2,837 births, 46% of the file).
2010s was Nala's strongest decade.
2,837 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 46% of all-time use.
Nala births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 5
1970s
5 births
- 1990s 320
1990s
320 births
- 2000s 822
2000s
822 births
- 2010s
2010s
2,837 births
- 2020s
2020s
2,154 births
What this shows Peak: 2010s at 2,837 births (46% of all-time use).
How Nala 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 Nala's total volume
Nala by state
Where Nala concentrates geographically, total births since 1979
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 573 | 9.3% |
| #2 | Florida | | 444 | 7.2% |
| #3 | Texas | | 433 | 7.1% |
| #4 | New York | | 426 | 6.9% |
| #5 | Georgia | | 320 | 5.2% |
| #6 | North Carolina | | 264 | 4.3% |
| #7 | Illinois | | 217 | 3.5% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 217 | 3.5% |
573 of 6,138 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 37 reporting states.
Nala appears in 37 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Nala's data
- Nala's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (2,837 total births) through the 2020s (2,154) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- California records the most Nalas (573 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 Nala
Nearby Names Like Nala
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Nala
Compare Nala side by side: Nala vs Nalani Nala vs Nallely Nala vs Naliyah
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Nala
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Nala: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2019)
Similar record span (~46 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, 1979–2025 (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 Nala 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.