Fun Facts About the Name Vela
- More than 1 thousand babies named Vela: U.S. records list 1,082 babies given the name Vela from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Vela Mean?
Vela is commonly explained as a word name from Latin vela, the plural of velum, meaning "sails" (the singular velum can mean "sail," "curtain," or "veil"). In Spanish, vela is a common noun with several senses, including "sail," "candle," and "watch," and Vela is also a surname. Those Spanish uses do not prove that every given name Vela comes from the same source, but they explain why the name is often treated as a word name with a nautical sense.
Vela Name History & Origins
The Latin velum belonged to ordinary vocabulary for cloth coverings and ships' sails; its plural vela is the form behind the name. Vela is also a southern constellation representing the sails of Argo Navis, the ship of Jason and the Argonauts in Greek myth. Argo Navis was an ancient constellation, and in the eighteenth century Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille divided it into Carina, Puppis, and Vela. That astronomical use is a later application of the Latin word, not evidence that Vela was an ancient personal name. In Spanish, Vela is an established surname, and the noun vela continues in several senses; the given name can be understood as a modern word name or a surname-derived name, but the available evidence does not fix a single line of descent for its personal-name origin.
How Popular is the Name Vela?
Vela recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1915. Its best rank was #964 in 1905.
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 | #6,813 | 17 | 0.0011% |
| 2024 | #5,925 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 2023 | #5,113 | 26 | 0.0016% |
| 2022 | #6,955 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2021 | #4,945 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 2020 | #9,503 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2019 | #6,681 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2018 | #6,225 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2017 | #7,423 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2016 | #5,601 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 2015 | #6,017 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 2014 | #7,615 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2013 | #9,580 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2012 | #11,200 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2011 | #9,690 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2010 | #8,255 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2009 | #20,044 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2007 | #15,388 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1998 | #16,495 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1970 | #9,307 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #7,809 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #5,451 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1963 | #6,559 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1961 | #5,815 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1960 | #6,349 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1959 | #6,206 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1957 | #6,052 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #3,482 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1951 | #3,993 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1950 | #4,715 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1949 | #5,219 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1947 | #3,994 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1946 | #4,923 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1945 | #4,523 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1943 | #4,660 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1942 | #3,718 | 8 | 0.0006% |
| 1941 | #4,386 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1940 | #4,315 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1939 | #3,128 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1938 | #3,823 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1937 | #3,777 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1936 | #2,842 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1935 | #3,407 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1934 | #2,282 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1933 | #2,533 | 12 | 0.0012% |
| 1932 | #3,549 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1931 | #2,300 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1930 | #2,295 | 15 | 0.0013% |
| 1929 | #3,378 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1928 | #2,087 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1927 | #2,090 | 19 | 0.0016% |
| 1926 | #2,463 | 15 | 0.0013% |
| 1925 | #2,187 | 18 | 0.0015% |
| 1924 | #1,988 | 21 | 0.0017% |
| 1923 | #1,729 | 25 | 0.0021% |
| 1922 | #2,180 | 18 | 0.0015% |
| 1921 | #2,498 | 15 | 0.0012% |
| 1920 | #1,883 | 22 | 0.0018% |
| 1919 | #1,560 | 27 | 0.0024% |
| 1918 | #1,878 | 21 | 0.0018% |
| 1917 | #2,093 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1916 | #1,797 | 20 | 0.0019% |
| 1915 | #1,113 | 38 | 0.0039% |
| 1914 | #1,258 | 25 | 0.0033% |
| 1913 | #1,524 | 16 | 0.0026% |
| 1912 | #1,470 | 15 | 0.0027% |
| 1911 | #1,367 | 13 | 0.0031% |
| 1910 | #1,332 | 13 | 0.0033% |
| 1909 | #1,146 | 14 | 0.0040% |
| 1908 | #1,197 | 13 | 0.0039% |
| 1907 | #1,203 | 12 | 0.0038% |
| 1906 | #1,709 | 7 | 0.0024% |
| 1905 | #964 | 16 | 0.0055% |
| 1904 | #1,166 | 11 | 0.0040% |
| 1903 | #1,430 | 8 | 0.0031% |
| 1902 | #1,427 | 8 | 0.0030% |
| 1901 | #1,329 | 8 | 0.0033% |
| 1900 | #1,221 | 11 | 0.0037% |
| 1899 | #1,826 | 5 | 0.0021% |
| 1898 | #1,165 | 10 | 0.0039% |
| 1897 | #1,250 | 8 | 0.0034% |
| 1896 | #1,809 | 5 | 0.0021% |
| 1895 | #1,796 | 5 | 0.0021% |
| 1894 | #1,696 | 5 | 0.0022% |
| 1893 | #1,641 | 5 | 0.0023% |
| 1890 | #1,518 | 5 | 0.0026% |
| 1888 | #1,264 | 6 | 0.0034% |
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 Vela Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are fixed in your opinions, firm in your friendships and square in your dealings with others. You are an excellent worker. Since you are both possessive and emotional, you can be either very practical or very impractical and unpredictable. Your dual nature needs to become steadfast. You are the marrying kind. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
Dependable, very down-to-earth and well grounded, you are always looking for meaningful work, a career where you can take pride in your work and do the best job you are capable of. Your prime desire is to build protected and secure environment at home and at work. You can be very persuasive in achieving goals and gaining objectives. You can be very detailed and well-organized and possess great organizational skills. At times you may appear too stubborn and overly critical to others, but your practical approach to life and productivity makes you one of the most beneficent members of community.
✦ Vela's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Vela's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.