Baby Names US
girls' name ★ peaked 1992

Mariela

Meaning A female given name from Spanish Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,232 Trend ↑ Rising 30%

A female given name from Spanish.

Rank 2025
#1,232
among girls · ↑90 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
183
named Mariela · +5% vs 2024
How common
1 in 8,783
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1992
532 babies
All-time total
11,668
#1,518 all-time among girls
First recorded
1958
in Social Security records

Mariela popularity over time

11,668 babies have been named Mariela since 1958, 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
0.080.150.230.318801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

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 Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s 6 – 6 1 – #5,850
1960s 94 – 94 9 +1467% #3,357
1970s 470 – 470 47 +400% #1,393
1980s 1,218 – 1,218 122 +159% #1,021
1990s 3,558 8 3,566 357 +193% #471
2000s 3,689 – 3,689 369 +3% #585
2010s 1,657 – 1,657 166 -55% #1,073
2020s (to 2025) 968 – 968 161 -3% #1,232

Where Mariela 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 191 0.12 outside top 500
2027 199 0.12 outside top 500
2028 206 0.13 outside top 500
2029 211 0.13 outside top 500
2030 216 0.13 outside top 500

Where Mariela is most popular

Girls named Mariela per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.102 per 1,000. Strongest in Texas, Arizona, and California.

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 Mariela 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
Texas 173 0.215 +111%
Arizona 29 0.207 +102%
California 137 0.163 +60%
Nebraska 5 0.139 +36%
Florida 45 0.105 ≈ national
Washington 15 0.104 ≈ national
Georgia 23 0.101 ≈ national
Colorado 11 0.099 ≈ national
Massachusetts 11 0.091 -11%
Virginia 15 0.088 -14%
New York 34 0.086 -16%
Oregon 5 0.077 -25%
Tennessee 12 0.076 -26%
North Carolina 13 0.057 -44%
Maryland 5 0.047 -54%
Ohio 11 0.046 -55%
Minnesota 5 0.046 -55%
New Jersey 8 0.044 -57%
Pennsylvania 8 0.034 -67%
Illinois 6 0.026 -74%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Mariela

Mariela is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,232 in 2025 with 183 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1958, 11,668 American babies have been named Mariela. Its peak came in 1992, when 532 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

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 Mariela stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Mariela?

The median living Mariela is about 24 years old; half are between 16 and 32. An estimated 12 thousand people named Mariela are alive in the United States today.

median 24 020406080100

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

Mariela year by year

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

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 183 #1,232 – –
2024 174 #1,322 – –
2023 165 #1,369 – –
2022 177 #1,334 – –
2021 130 #1,618 – –
2020 139 #1,530 – –
2019 130 #1,639 – –
2018 146 #1,502 – –
2017 121 #1,747 – –
2016 136 #1,620 – –
2015 141 #1,560 – –
2014 171 #1,366 – –
2013 172 #1,357 – –
2012 213 #1,155 – –
2011 195 #1,232 – –
2010 232 #1,073 – –
2009 272 #979 – –
2008 295 #927 – –
2007 370 #780 – –
2006 342 #802 – –
2005 416 #669 – –
2004 481 #585 – –
2003 435 #617 – –
2002 371 #679 – –
2001 398 #634 – –
2000 309 #746 – –
1995 289 #715 – –
1990 239 #820 – –
1985 95 #1,370 – –
1980 110 #1,200 – –
1975 44 #2,010 – –
1970 23 #2,994 – –
1965 15 #3,357 – –
1960 6 #6,130 – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Mariela

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

  1. 1 Mariela Castro Mariela Castro Former First Lady of Cuba (born 1962) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Mariela?

The median living Mariela is about 24 years old. Half of all living Marielas are between 16 and 32 years old.

How many people named Mariela are alive today?

An estimated 12 thousand people named Mariela are alive in the United States, based on 11,668 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Mariela mean?

A female given name from Spanish.

How popular is the name Mariela in 2025?

Mariela ranked #1,232 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 183 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Mariela?

11,668 babies have been named Mariela in the United States since 1958, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Mariela most popular?

Mariela peaked in 1992, when 532 newborns received the name.

Is Mariela a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Mariela rising or falling?

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

Will Mariela become more popular?

Mariela is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 216 girls named Mariela in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Mariela?

Well-known people named Mariela include Mariela Castro (politician).

Names like Mariela

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

Compare Mariela with similar names → More names starting with M →