Mayeli
A feminine Mexican variant of the Spanish name Mayela meaning "beloved daughter".
Name Census estimates that about 976 living Americans carry the first name Mayeli. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mayeli today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mayeli births was 2023 (83 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mayeli. 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.
People living today
976
~ 1 in 351,183 Americans
Peak year
2023
83 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,618
Tracked since 1989
Census
Mayeli in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 812 people with the first name Mayeli, which placed it at #14,499 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
#14,499
National first-name rank
People counted
812
812 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
96.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mayeli
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mayeli is Hispanic at 96.7%. The next largest groups are White (2.2%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Mayeli 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 Mayeli at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino96.7% · 785
- White2.2% · 18
- Black or African American0.7% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 2
- Two or more races0.1% · 1
Popularity
Mayeli: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mayeli from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 350 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mayeli 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 Mayeli during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mayelis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. California, Texas, Arizona recorded the most babies named Mayeli, while Washington, New Mexico, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 79 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mayeli
The name Mayeli is believed to have its origins in the Nahuatl language, spoken by the Aztec people of ancient Mexico. It is thought to be derived from the words "mayal" meaning "hand" and "elli" meaning "jewel" or "precious thing." Together, the name can be interpreted as "precious hand" or "precious one."
The Aztec civilization flourished in central Mexico from the 14th to the 16th centuries. During this time, the Nahuatl language was widely spoken, and many names were derived from it. The name Mayeli may have been in use among the Aztec people, although there is limited documentation from that period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mayeli is found in the writings of Spanish chroniclers who documented the conquest of Mexico in the 16th century. These chronicles mention indigenous people with names similar to Mayeli, suggesting the name's antiquity.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the name Mayeli. One such person was Mayeli Hernández, a Mexican artist and painter who lived in the late 19th century. Her vibrant works captured the cultural traditions and landscapes of Mexico.
Another notable Mayeli was Mayeli Alonso, a celebrated Mexican actress of the mid-20th century. She appeared in numerous films and television shows, earning acclaim for her versatile performances.
In the field of literature, Mayeli Rivas was a prominent Mexican poet and writer of the 20th century. Her collections of poetry explored themes of identity, love, and the human experience.
Mayeli García was a Mexican activist and advocate for indigenous rights in the late 20th century. She worked tirelessly to promote the preservation of indigenous cultures and languages.
A more recent figure with the name Mayeli is Mayeli Reyes, a Mexican operatic soprano who has performed on stages around the world. Her powerful voice and interpretations have earned her critical acclaim.
While the name Mayeli has its roots in ancient Mesoamerican culture, it has endured and been carried by notable individuals across various disciplines, maintaining its connection to its rich cultural heritage.
People
Mayeli + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mayeli as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Mayeli: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mayeli?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 976 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mayeli 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 351,183 US residents.
Is Mayeli a common name?
We classify Mayeli as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 986 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mayeli most popular?
The single biggest year for Mayeli was 2023, when 83 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mayeli is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mayeli in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 812 people with the name Mayeli, or 0.27 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #14,499 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 Mayeli 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 Mayeli?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mayeli appears almost entirely female. Of the 809 people counted with this name, 99.4% 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 Mayeli?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mayeli is Hispanic at 96.7%. The next largest groups are White (2.2%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Mayeli most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Mayeli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.7% (785 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 Mayeli in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mayeli a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mayeli 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 Mayeli still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mayeli 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 Mayeli 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 called Mayeli?
You can see how many people have the name Mayeli on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.