Gayla
Gayla is a given name. Notable people with the name include:Gayla Drake, American guitarist and singer/songwriter Gayla Margolin, American psychologist Gayla Hendren McKenzie, American politician Gayla Peevey, child star from Ponca City, Oklahoma who sang "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" Gayla Reid, Australian-born Canadian writer Gayla Trail,, Canadian writer, gardener, designer,…
- English
Meaning & Origin of Gayla
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Gayla is a given name. Notable people with the name include:Gayla Drake, American guitarist and singer/songwriter Gayla Margolin, American psychologist Gayla Hendren McKenzie, American politician Gayla Peevey, child star from Ponca City, Oklahoma who sang "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" Gayla Reid, Australian-born Canadian writer Gayla Trail,, Canadian writer, gardener, designer,…
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Gayla
Gayla first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1921, with 7 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1954: 617 births, good for #345 nationwide. The 1950s were its strongest decade, accounting for roughly 36% of all recorded Gaylas. Its most recent appearance in the national data came in 2014 (6 births); the name has since faded from the published rankings. In total, more than 11K Gaylas have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1920s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Gayla
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Gayla. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Gayla
Phonetically similar names — useful when Gayla 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 Gayla
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About the name Gayla
Gayla is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1921 and has accumulated 11K births in the dataset. Gayla's peak popularity came in 1954 when it ranked #345. Use the chart and map above to compare Gayla's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1954 →
- Names of the 1950s →
- Names starting with "G" →
- 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.