Zylan
A unique invented name with no confirmed meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 499 living Americans carry the first name Zylan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zylan today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zylan births was 2024 (49 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zylan. 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 Zylan with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
499
~ 1 in 686,882 Americans
Peak year
2024
49 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,704
Tracked since 2002
Census
Zylan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 306 people with the first name Zylan, which placed it at #29,088 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
#29,088
National first-name rank
People counted
306
306 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
55.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zylan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zylan is Black at 55.6%. The next largest groups are White (21.9%) and Hispanic (9.5%). 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 Zylan 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 Zylan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American55.6% · 170
- White21.9% · 67
- Hispanic or Latino9.5% · 29
- Two or more races9.2% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 3
Popularity
Zylan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zylan from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 239 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zylan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zylan 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 Zylan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Zylans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Texas, Mississippi, Georgia recorded the most babies named Zylan, while Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Zylan
The given name Zylan does not appear to have a definitive origin or history. It is likely a modern invented name, potentially derived from a combination of other names or words. There are no clear records of this name being used in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records from various cultures and time periods.
However, it is possible that the name Zylan may have been inspired by existing names or words from different languages. For instance, it could have roots in the Germanic name Zyla, which means "serenity" or "calm." Alternatively, it might be related to the Arabic name Zain, meaning "beauty" or "grace."
Furthermore, the name Zylan could be a modern variation of the name Zilan, which is a Kurdish name meaning "beautiful." This name has been used in various regions of the Middle East and may have influenced the creation of the name Zylan.
Regarding historical references, there are no notable figures from past eras who are widely known to have borne the name Zylan. As it is likely a recently invented name, there are no recorded examples of its use until relatively modern times.
Nonetheless, it is worth mentioning a few individuals who share this name in contemporary times. Zylan Cheatham (born 1999) is an American professional basketball player currently playing for the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA. Zylan Holt is an American football player who plays as a wide receiver for the University of Colorado Boulder. Zylan Lambert is a Canadian actor and singer known for his role in the television series "The Next Step."
While the name Zylan does not have a rich historical background, its uniqueness and potential origins from various linguistic roots make it an intriguing name choice in modern times. As with many newly created names, its popularity and usage may continue to evolve in the future.
People
Zylan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zylan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zylan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zylan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 499 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zylan 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 686,882 US residents.
Is Zylan a common name?
We classify Zylan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 503 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zylan most popular?
The single biggest year for Zylan was 2024, when 49 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zylan is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zylan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 306 people with the name Zylan, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,088 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 Zylan 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 Zylan?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zylan leans strongly male. 278 people counted with this name were male (92.1%), compared with 24 female bearers (7.9%). 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 Zylan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zylan is Black at 55.6%. The next largest groups are White (21.9%) and Hispanic (9.5%). 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 Zylan most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Zylan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.6% (170 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 Zylan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zylan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zylan in the SSA data are male. 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 Zylan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zylan 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 Zylan 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 common is the name Zylan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.