Fun Facts About the Name Zalaya
- 583 babies named Zalaya: U.S. records list 583 babies given the name Zalaya from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Zalaya Mean?
Zalaya is a rare name, and its most likely background is the Basque surname Zelaya, also spelled Zelaia. That surname comes from the Basque word zelai, meaning "meadow" or "flatland," with the article ending -a, so the sense is roughly "the meadow." The spelling with a in place of the first e turns up in some Spanish-language records, but Zalaya is not well documented as a name with its own separate recorded etymology, so the link to Zelaya is a probable explanation rather than a settled one.
Zalaya Name History & Origins
Zelaya / Zelaia is an old Basque family name. Basque surnames of this kind often come from the name of a house or a piece of land, and zelai ("meadow, field") fits that pattern. The surname spread through Spain and, with Spanish settlement, through Latin America. It is widely known from José Santos Zelaya, president of Nicaragua from 1893 to 1909, after whom the country's eastern region was named. The variant spelling Zalaya appears in the Spanish-speaking world as a surname and, more recently, as a given name. As a first name it is uncommon, and it has no long recorded history of its own that can be traced.
How Popular is the Name Zalaya?
Zalaya 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 2023. Its best rank was #2,700 in 2023.
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 | #2,776 | 62 | 0.0039% |
| 2024 | #3,438 | 46 | 0.0029% |
| 2023 | #2,700 | 65 | 0.0041% |
| 2022 | #3,533 | 45 | 0.0027% |
| 2021 | #4,084 | 36 | 0.0022% |
| 2020 | #3,670 | 41 | 0.0025% |
| 2019 | #3,386 | 47 | 0.0028% |
| 2018 | #4,353 | 33 | 0.0019% |
| 2017 | #4,917 | 28 | 0.0016% |
| 2016 | #5,979 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 2015 | #6,230 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2014 | #6,438 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2013 | #5,309 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2012 | #7,790 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2011 | #14,801 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2010 | #12,253 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2009 | #9,371 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2007 | #8,998 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2006 | #9,273 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2005 | #14,483 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2004 | #14,150 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #17,617 | 5 | 0.0003% |
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 Zalaya Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have aspiration and inspiration, hope and guidance. Since you are intuitive and perceptive and you understand human nature. You have the power to achieve. Diplomacy and discretion make you a good mediator. You are inspired, introspective, and have a good understanding of the human heart. You can have the ability to commercialize your artistic talents successfully. You are often a mystery to others and to yourself. You are always reaching for something higher, without exactly knowing what that "higher" is. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Zalaya's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Zalaya's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.