Calla
Calla is a Swedish feminine given name and surname given name that is a short form of Carolina and an alternate form of Kalla. Calla is also an English feminine given name, but its derived from the Greek root name Kalós. Calla is an Irish feminine given name that is a diminutive form of Caoileann. Notable people who are known by this name include the following:
- English
Meaning & Origin of Calla
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Calla is a Swedish feminine given name and surname given name that is a short form of Carolina and an alternate form of Kalla. Calla is also an English feminine given name, but its derived from the Greek root name Kalós. Calla is an Irish feminine given name that is a diminutive form of Caoileann. Notable people who are known by this name include the following:
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Calla
Calla first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 6 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2017: 176 births, good for #1,321 nationwide. About 30% of every Calla on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Calla ranks #1,537 for baby girls with 139 births, holding steady (+1%). All told, over 5K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Calla
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Calla. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Calla
Phonetically similar names — useful when Calla is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Calla
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About the name Calla
Calla is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 5K births in the dataset. Calla's peak popularity came in 2017 when it ranked #623. Use the chart and map above to compare Calla's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2017 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "C" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.