Neela
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- NEE-la
- Origin
- Sanskrit
- UK rank, 2025
- #4,276 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #3,295 for girls
Neela is a girls' name of Sanskrit origin, meaning “dark blue”. In 2025 it ranked 4,276th for girls in the UK (5 babies) and 3,295th for girls in the US (47 babies).
What does Neela mean?
Sanskrit: from nila
“dark blue”
From Sanskrit nila, used for deep blue and for the sapphire (neelam); also found as a Finnish name.
Is Neela a girl's or a boy's name?
Neela is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 5 girls in the UK and 47 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Neela in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #4,276among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 5about 1 in 56,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 45% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 5 girls in the UK were named Neela, making it the 4,276th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,566th. Its busiest year was 2007, with 10 girls.
Half of all the girls named Neela in the UK since 1996 were born between 2008 and 2020, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 78 girls in the UK were given Neela or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #531, up from #4,276 for this spelling alone.
Among girls in 2025, it was 4,200th in England and Wales.
Neela in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #4,276 |
| 2024 | 0 | – |
| 2023 | 6 | #3,766 |
| 2022 | 3 | #5,885 |
| 2021 | 8 | #3,082 |
| 2020 | 10 | #2,566 |
| 2019 | 5 | #4,214 |
| 2018 | 5 | #4,204 |
| 2017 | 8 | #3,102 |
| 2016 | 6 | #3,788 |
| 2015 | 6 | #3,777 |
| 2014 | 4 | #4,888 |
| 2013 | 5 | #4,267 |
| 2012 | 3 | #6,108 |
| 2011 | 6 | #3,737 |
| 2010 | 3 | #5,938 |
| 2009 | 9 | #2,695 |
| 2008 | 7 | #3,203 |
| 2007 | 10 | #2,354 |
| 2006 | 8 | #2,657 |
| 2005 | 1 | #6,340 |
| 2004 | 1 | #6,173 |
| 2003 | 3 | #4,560 |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 5 | #2,928 |
How popular is Neela in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #3,295among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 47about 1 in 34,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Steadydown 3% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 47 girls in the US were named Neela, making it the 3,295th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 3,450th. Its busiest year was 2007, with 103 girls. It first appears in the records in 1972.
Half of all the girls named Neela in the US since 1880 were born between 2007 and 2018, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 211 girls in the US were given Neela or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,024, up from #3,295 for this spelling alone.
Neela in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 47 | #3,295 |
| 2024 | 54 | #3,013 |
| 2023 | 44 | #3,524 |
| 2022 | 44 | #3,535 |
| 2021 | 36 | #4,011 |
| 2020 | 44 | #3,450 |
| 2019 | 52 | #3,084 |
| 2018 | 54 | #3,003 |
| 2017 | 48 | #3,305 |
| 2016 | 27 | #4,989 |
| 2015 | 59 | #2,927 |
| 2014 | 54 | #3,078 |
| 2013 | 53 | #3,075 |
| 2012 | 47 | #3,418 |
| 2011 | 62 | #2,795 |
| 2010 | 68 | #2,642 |
| 2009 | 85 | #2,286 |
| 2008 | 93 | #2,157 |
| 2007 | 103 | #1,988 |
| 2006 | 69 | #2,602 |
| 2005 | 46 | #3,313 |
| 2004 | 40 | #3,627 |
| 2003 | 12 | #8,500 |
| 2002 | 7 | #12,181 |
| 2001 | 10 | #9,344 |
| 2000 | 0 | – |
| 1999 | 7 | #11,378 |
| 1998 | 0 | – |
| 1997 | 0 | – |
| 1996 | 0 | – |
| 1995 | 0 | – |
| 1994 | 10 | #8,116 |
| 1993 | 5 | #13,435 |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 0 | – |
| 1990 | 5 | #12,952 |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 8 | #8,386 |
| 1987 | 6 | #9,820 |
| 1986 | 0 | – |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 8 | #7,396 |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 8 | #7,467 |
| 1981 | 10 | #6,321 |
| 1980 | 8 | #7,417 |
| 1979 | 10 | #6,188 |
| 1978 | 5 | #9,748 |
| 1977 | 0 | – |
| 1976 | 7 | #7,294 |
| 1975 | 0 | – |
| 1974 | 6 | #7,678 |
| 1973 | 7 | #6,664 |
| 1972 | 6 | #7,290 |
Names like Neela
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Safa Ayra Hafsa Ayla Maya Hiba Amira Zainab Khadija Raya Sienna Keira
Other spellings of Neela
Names related to Neela
More Sanskrit names
Bodhi Arya Lila Arjun Aarav Rohan Kali Aryan Opal Arjan Vihaan Aadhya Avyaan Ishaan Siya Leena
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Neela: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/neela, updated 20 October 2026.