Total births
15,187
Girls' name · since 1962
Selah
15,187 babies named Selah in U.S. Social Security records since 1962, with the highest year being 2025. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #279
- among girls today
- 15,187
- born since 1962
- 2010s
- peak decade
- 98%
- more common than other girls
Yes -- Selah is the #279 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 15,187 recorded since 1962.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Selah has been recorded 15,187 times among girls since 1962, currently ranked #279 nationally and more common than 98% 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 1962 to 2025.
- #279 among girls today
- 15,187 born since 1962
- 2010s peak decade
- 98% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Selah is currently the #279 girls' name in America, more common than 98% of girls - 15,187 born since 1962, peaking in the 2010s.
- #279
- among girls today
- 15,187
- born since 1962
- 2010s
- peak decade
- 98%
- more common than other girls
Selah vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#279
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 98% of names given to girls today.
2010s
Peak decade
41% of everyone ever named Selah was born in this single decade.
2025
Single peak year
1,416 babies were named Selah in 2025 - its busiest year on record.
How Selah compares
15,187 Top 7% higher than 93% of 17,726 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
Selah's all-time total is 40x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Selah | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 15,187 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 1,416 | 48 | 19,840 |
Selah's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Selah's full recorded timeline at 1998, 98% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 2% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1967, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2025 peak of 1,416 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Selah at a glance
Top 1,000 girls' namePeak year
2025
Current rank
#279
Active since
1962
Selah popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1962–2025
- Peak year (2025)
- 1,416
- Annual births at peak, across 64 years of records
Selah popularity over time - boys
207 total births recorded since 1998 (Selah as boys' name)
Selah by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
2010s was Selah's strongest decade.
6,176 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 41% of all-time use.
Selah births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1960s 11
1960s
11 births
- 1970s 55
1970s
55 births
- 1980s 104
1980s
104 births
- 1990s 347
1990s
347 births
- 2000s
2000s
2,482 births
- 2010s
2010s
6,176 births
- 2020s
2020s
6,012 births
What this shows Peak: 2010s at 6,176 births (41% of all-time use).
How Selah 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 Selah's total volume
Selah vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Selah by state
Where Selah concentrates geographically, total births since 1962
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 1,841 | 12.1% |
| #2 | Texas | | 1,434 | 9.4% |
| #3 | Florida | | 929 | 6.1% |
| #4 | North Carolina | | 615 | 4.0% |
| #5 | Georgia | | 566 | 3.7% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 540 | 3.6% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 518 | 3.4% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 513 | 3.4% |
California share of Selah's total US births 12.1%
Even split
1,841 of 15,187 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 48 reporting states.
Selah appears in 48 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Selah? ▼
15,187 babies have been named Selah since 1962. It currently ranks #279 among girls. The peak year was 2025 with 1,416 births.
When was Selah most popular? ▼
Selah was most popular in the 2010s decade with 6,176 total births. The single peak year was 2025.
Where is Selah most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Selah are California (1,841 births), Texas (1,434 births), Florida (929 births).
How long has the name Selah been used? ▼
Selah has been recorded in Social Security data since 1962, spanning 64 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Selah? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Selena, Selma, Selina, Selene, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Selah's data
- Selah's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (6,176 total births) through the 2020s (6,012) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- California records the most Selahs (1,841 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Selah
Nearby Names Like Selah
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Selah
Selena Girl
#245 59,887 births
Selma Girl
#2776 26,881 births
Selina Girl
#1306 19,225 births
Selene Girl
#674 9,713 births
Sela Girl
#4132 1,328 births
Compare Selah side by side: Selah vs Selena Selah vs Selma Selah vs Selina
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Selah
Milani #278
11,646 births · Peak 2022
Daniela #280
68,514 births · Peak 2007
Kailani #277
12,778 births · Peak 2022
Angela #281
673,257 births · Peak 1971
Morgan #276
223,626 births · Peak 1995
Juliet #282
37,966 births · Peak 2016
Zuri #275
16,844 births · Peak 2022
Alessia #283
10,179 births · Peak 2024
Data Sources
Data as of June 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, 1962–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Selah: #279 Girls' Name - 15,187 Births, Peak 2025." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/selah. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Selah 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 June 2026.