Girl · #8,980 in 2026

Stellaluna

Stellaluna is a 1993 children's book written and illustrated by Janell Cannon. It is about a young fruit bat, Stellaluna, who becomes separated from her mother and finds her way to a nest of birds. She is adopted by them and learns bird-like behavior. Eventually, Stellaluna finds other bats and reunites with her mother, and she learns how to behave like a bat.

Current Rank
#8,980
Peak Rank
#8,980 (2023)
Total Babies
64
5-Yr Trend
Stable
2015
First Year
2023
Last Year
2023
Peak Year
#8980
Peak Rank
64
Total Count
9
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Stellaluna

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Stellaluna is a 1993 children's book written and illustrated by Janell Cannon. It is about a young fruit bat, Stellaluna, who becomes separated from her mother and finds her way to a nest of birds. She is adopted by them and learns bird-like behavior. Eventually, Stellaluna finds other bats and reunites with her mother, and she learns how to behave like a bat.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Origin & history
An example of an epauletted fruit bat, Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat . Author Janell Cannon grew up in rural Minnesota ; her parents shared their enjoyment of nature with her and her siblings. She stated that she was a "free-range kid, able to gain an appreciation for animals like frogs, salamanders, snakes, and bats". She empathized with bats, as they are maligned by many cultures . She said, for bats to be "misunderstood and mistreated by humans, out of fear, really affected me". Later, when working at a library in California, Cannon noted that only three books in the children's section fe

The Story of Stellaluna

Stellaluna first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 2015, with 5 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2023: 11 births, good for #8,980 nationwide. About 53% of every Stellaluna on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. Stellaluna last appeared in the published SSA data in 2023, with 11 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 64 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 2010s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Names that sound like Stellaluna

Phonetically similar names — useful when Stellaluna 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 Stellaluna

What does the name Stellaluna mean?
Stellaluna is a 1993 children's book written and illustrated by Janell Cannon. It is about a young fruit bat, Stellaluna, who becomes separated from her mother and finds her way to a nest of birds. She is adopted by them and learns bird-like behavior. Eventually, Stellaluna finds other bats and reunites with her mother, and she learns how to behave like a bat.
How popular is Stellaluna in 2026?
In 2026, Stellaluna ranks #8,980 among girls' names in the U.S., with 11 babies given the name that year.
When was Stellaluna most popular?
Stellaluna reached its peak popularity in 2023, ranking #8,980 that year with 11 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Stellaluna most popular?
Stellaluna has historically been most popular in Texas. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Stellaluna.
Is Stellaluna a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Stellaluna is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Stellaluna?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Stellaluna include Holliday, Macrina, Gaela. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

Similar Names

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Holliday
Peak #8980
👧
Macrina
Peak #8980
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Gaela
Peak #8980
👧
Hollan
Peak #8980
👧
Mariavictoria
Peak #8980
👧
Ineisha
Peak #8980
👧
Imaani
Peak #8980
👧
Lovelee
Peak #8980

About the name Stellaluna

Stellaluna is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 2015 and has accumulated 64 births in the dataset. Stellaluna's peak popularity came in 2023 when it ranked #8,980. Use the chart and map above to compare Stellaluna's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

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.