Declining since 2008, #8,362 for girls today.
Popularity of Hayla since 1987
Babies named Hayla per year in U.S. Social Security records.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1980s | 5 |
| 1990s | 65 |
| 2000s | 200 |
| 2010s | 145 |
| 2020s | 59 |
Meaning & origin
Hayla first appeared in U.S. birth records in 1987, a relatively recent entry into the landscape of American girl names. It reached its highest rank of 8362 in 2009, with a rank of 8362 in 2025, and it has been declining in use since 2008, reflecting a trajectory of falling popularity after its peak. At its 2025 rank, approximately 1 in 133,939 newborn girls received the name, indicating it remains a rare choice. The name has no strong regional concentration, as it did not appear among the top states. Its spelling places it within a cluster of phonetically similar names like Hayley, Hailey, and Haley, which have seen broader success.
Hayla is most likely a modern respelling or diminutive of Hayley, itself a variant of the English surname Haley, which originates from a place name in Lincolnshire meaning 'hay clearing' or 'hay meadow'. The name gained popularity in the 20th century as a given name for girls, with the spelling Hayla emerging as a fashionable alternative, particularly in the United States from the 1980s onward. Its rise coincides with broader trends of inventing names through phonetic respelling of established names.
“Hayla” around the world
Where Hayla lands in the latest official birth statistics abroad, matched to the U.S. spelling.
France
5
babies in 2024
Sources: INSEE (France).
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Hay, Haya, LaLa
Sibling names for Hayla
Names that share Hayla's style, for a brother or sister.
