Leaha
A feminine name with Hebrew origins meaning "tired" or "weary one".
Name Census estimates that about 528 living Americans carry the first name Leaha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Leaha today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Leaha births was 1990 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Leaha. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Leaha with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
528
~ 1 in 649,156 Americans
Peak year
1990
26 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
2013 SSA rank
#10,679
Tracked since 1949
Census
Leaha in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 571 people with the first name Leaha, which placed it at #18,776 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#18,776
National first-name rank
People counted
571
571 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Leaha
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Leaha is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (8.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Leaha described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Leaha at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.2% · 412
- Black or African American9.3% · 53
- Hispanic or Latino8.9% · 51
- Two or more races7.4% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 6
Popularity
Leaha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Leaha from the 1940s through to the 2010s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 139 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Leaha by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Leaha during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Leaha
The name Leaha is believed to have its origins in the Hawaiian language. It is thought to be a variation or alternative spelling of the Hawaiian name Leia, which means "child of heaven" or "heavenly flower." The name is rooted in the rich cultural traditions and mythology of the Hawaiian islands.
Historically, the name Leaha first appeared in written records and folklore from the Hawaiian islands, dating back to the late 18th century. It was commonly used by Native Hawaiian families and communities during this time period. The earliest recorded use of the name Leaha is found in genealogical records and oral histories passed down through generations of Hawaiian families.
While the name Leaha does not have a direct connection to any specific ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is closely tied to the spiritual and cultural beliefs of the Hawaiian people. The name's meaning, "child of heaven" or "heavenly flower," reflects the Hawaiian reverence for nature, the celestial realm, and the interconnectedness of all living beings.
One of the earliest notable figures with the name Leaha was Leaha Kaʻanapali, a Hawaiian chiefess and landowner who lived in the early 19th century on the island of Maui. She was known for her leadership and her efforts to preserve traditional Hawaiian cultural practices and land rights.
Another prominent individual with the name Leaha was Leaha Kealoha, a Hawaiian educator and advocate for Native Hawaiian rights in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She played a significant role in establishing Hawaiian language schools and promoting the preservation of Hawaiian culture and traditions.
In the realm of Hawaiian music and hula, Leaha Kaʻaihue was a renowned kumu hula (hula teacher) and practitioner of traditional Hawaiian chants and dances in the early 20th century. She was instrumental in passing on the knowledge and art of hula to future generations.
Leaha Napeahi was a celebrated Hawaiian artist and practitioner of traditional Hawaiian arts and crafts in the mid-20th century. Her works, including intricate weavings and tapa cloth designs, are celebrated for their cultural significance and artistic excellence.
Lastly, Leaha Kealoha-Kalima was a prominent Hawaiian activist and advocate for Native Hawaiian rights and sovereignty in the late 20th century. She played a vital role in the Hawaiian Renaissance movement, which sought to revive and perpetuate Hawaiian language, culture, and self-determination.
People
Leaha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Leaha as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Leaha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Leaha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 528 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Leaha going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 649,156 US residents.
Is Leaha a common name?
We classify Leaha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 559 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Leaha most popular?
The single biggest year for Leaha was 1990, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Leaha is about 36 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Leaha in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 571 people with the name Leaha, or 0.19 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,776 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Leaha in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Leaha?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Leaha appears almost entirely female. Of the 564 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Leaha?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Leaha is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (8.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Leaha most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Leaha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.2% (412 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Leaha in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Leaha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Leaha in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Leaha still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Leaha in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Leaha can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Leaha?
Find out how many Americans are named Leaha on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.