girls' name ★ peaked 2018

Ela

Meaning hazel Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,562 Trend → Stable

Ela is a feminine given name of Turkish origin meaning "hazel".

Rank 2025
#1,562
among girls · ↑161 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
135
named Ela · +14% vs 2024
How common
1 in 11,906
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2018
150 babies
All-time total
2,846
#3,721 all-time among girls
First recorded
1887
in Social Security records

Ela popularity over time

2,846 babies have been named Ela since 1887, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.030.050.080.118801900192019401960198020002020Peak 2018Girls

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Per year Change Best rank
1880s 19 2 – #1,052
1890s 50 5 +163% #976
1900s 62 6 +24% #942
1910s 76 8 +23% #2,021
1920s 88 9 +16% #2,628
1930s 39 4 -56% #2,738
1940s – – – –
1950s 6 1 – #5,605
1960s 18 2 +200% #4,984
1970s 16 2 -11% #8,626
1980s 24 2 +50% #9,051
1990s 76 8 +217% #7,868
2000s 521 52 +586% #2,047
2010s 1,152 115 +121% #1,465
2020s (to 2025) 699 117 +1% #1,562

Where Ela is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 133 0.08 outside top 500
2027 132 0.08 outside top 500
2028 131 0.08 outside top 500
2029 130 0.08 outside top 500
2030 129 0.08 outside top 500

Where Ela is most popular

Girls named Ela per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.071 per 1,000. Strongest in Florida, New York, and New Jersey.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Ela born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Florida 84 0.196 +175%
New York 65 0.164 +130%
New Jersey 28 0.155 +117%
California 85 0.101 +41%
Massachusetts 11 0.091 +27%
Connecticut 5 0.086 +20%
Texas 58 0.072 ≈ national
Illinois 10 0.044 -39%
Arizona 6 0.043 -40%
Georgia 6 0.026 -63%
Pennsylvania 5 0.021 -70%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Colorado – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Ela

Ela is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #1,562 in 2025 with 135 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1887, 2,846 American babies have been named Ela. Its peak came in 2018, when 150 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Ela stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Ela?

The median living Ela is about 10 years old; half are between 5 and 16. An estimated 2,500 people named Ela are alive in the United States today.

median 10 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Ela year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank
2025 135 #1,562
2024 118 #1,723
2023 110 #1,828
2022 99 #1,977
2021 118 #1,743
2020 119 #1,706
2019 136 #1,573
2018 150 #1,465
2017 115 #1,805
2016 100 #1,987
2015 99 #2,000
2014 104 #1,928
2013 98 #1,993
2012 117 #1,764
2011 116 #1,759
2010 117 #1,764
2009 100 #2,047
2008 69 #2,668
2007 73 #2,546
2006 68 #2,644
2005 78 #2,301
2004 44 #3,410
2003 44 #3,310
2002 13 #7,962
2001 18 #6,148
2000 14 #7,278
1995 6 #12,220
1990 8 #9,515
1985 – –
1980 – –
1975 5 #9,478
1970 – –
1965 – –
1960 5 #6,630
1955 – –
1950 – –
1945 – –
1940 – –
1935 7 #3,503
1930 11 #2,738
1925 9 #3,449
1920 13 #2,628
1915 9 #2,963
1910 – –
1905 6 #1,763
1900 7 #1,617
1895 – –
1890 – –
1885 – –
1880 – –

Famous people named Ela

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Ela Bhatt Ela Bhatt Indian cooperative organiser (1933–2022) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Ela, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Ela?

The median living Ela is about 10 years old. Half of all living Elas are between 5 and 16 years old.

How many people named Ela are alive today?

An estimated 2,500 people named Ela are alive in the United States, based on 2,846 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Ela mean?

Ela is a feminine given name of Turkish origin meaning "hazel".

How popular is the name Ela in 2025?

Ela ranked #1,562 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 135 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Ela?

2,846 babies have been named Ela in the United States since 1887, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Ela most popular?

Ela peaked in 2018, when 150 newborns received the name.

Is Ela a boy or girl name?

Ela is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Ela rising or falling?

Ela is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Ela become more popular?

Ela looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 129 girls named Ela in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Ela?

Well-known people named Ela include Ela Bhatt (social activist).

Names like Ela

Names that sound and feel close to Ela: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Ela with similar names → More names starting with E →