Fun Facts About the Name Akila
- 730 babies named Akila: U.S. records list 730 babies given the name Akila from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Akila Mean?
Akila has two independent origins. In Sanskrit the name comes from akhila (अखिल), an adjective meaning "whole, entire, complete." It is built from the negative prefix a- plus khila, "gap, remainder, waste land," so the literal sense is "without a gap" - complete or entire. The feminine form Akhilā appears in English both as Akhila and as Akila. In Tamil, which uses the related noun akilam for "world," the name is commonly explained as "the world" or "the universe," a customary interpretation rather than the literal Sanskrit sense.
Separately, Akila stands for the Arabic ʿAqīla (عقيلة), the feminine of ʿaqīl, "wise, sensible," from a root tied to ʿaql, "reason, intellect." The spellings Akila, Aqila, Aqeela, and Akilah all reflect the difficulty of writing the Arabic letter ʿayn in English; Akilah is the form best known in Swahili-speaking East Africa and in the United States.
Akila Name History & Origins
In Sanskrit literature akhila is a common adjective for "whole" or "entire," and the word survives in modern Indian languages - Hindi and Marathi keep akhil, while Tamil uses akilam for "world." The feminine name Akhilā, with the shorter spelling Akila beside it, is used in South Asia; a final long ā in the source language is often written simply as a in English, which is how Akila arose as a variant of Akhila.
The Arabic name ʿAqīla has long been given to women in the Muslim world. Along the East African coast, Arabic contact carried the root into Swahili as akili, "intelligence, understanding," and forms such as Akila and Akilah are used in East Africa and among African American families in the United States.
Akila is also a masculine name in Christian usage, where it represents the biblical Aquila - a tentmaker from Pontus who, with his wife Priscilla, worked alongside the Apostle Paul in Corinth and Ephesus (Acts 18). The Greek form Ἀκύλας and the Latin Aquila go back to Latin aquila, "eagle," a meaning with no connection to the Sanskrit or Arabic names. In Russian and other Slavic church usage this saint's name is written Акила (Akila), and it appears in Eastern Orthodox calendars.
How Popular is the Name Akila?
Akila has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1997. Its best rank was #3,817 in 1997.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,386 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2024 | #11,103 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2023 | #10,327 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2022 | #9,074 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2021 | #8,040 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2020 | #6,936 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 2019 | #8,155 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2018 | #8,168 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2017 | #4,814 | 28 | 0.0016% |
| 2016 | #7,245 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2015 | #6,035 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2014 | #10,161 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2013 | #10,273 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2012 | #8,218 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2011 | #9,739 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2010 | #7,532 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2009 | #8,068 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2008 | #8,544 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2007 | #10,844 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2006 | #6,600 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2005 | #8,349 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2004 | #8,735 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2003 | #5,800 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2002 | #8,297 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2001 | #5,369 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2000 | #8,041 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1999 | #7,249 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1998 | #6,375 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1997 | #3,817 | 29 | 0.0017% |
| 1996 | #4,741 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 1995 | #4,221 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 1994 | #5,717 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1993 | #4,100 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1992 | #5,723 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1991 | #7,437 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1990 | #8,510 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1989 | #6,962 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1988 | #5,898 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1987 | #9,852 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #6,165 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1985 | #5,081 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1984 | #6,820 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1983 | #5,153 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1982 | #5,213 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1981 | #5,576 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1980 | #5,250 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1979 | #5,096 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1978 | #4,681 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 1977 | #4,235 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 1976 | #8,174 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1975 | #4,861 | 12 | 0.0008% |
| 1974 | #7,690 | 6 | 0.0004% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Akila Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Akila's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Akila's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.