Girl's name
Isla
Say it EYE-luh
Roots in English and Scottish Gaelic 2 syllables
Where Isla is loved, common and rare
Loved in the UK, British Columbia, Ontario and seven more places. Common in Ireland. Rare in Quebec, Berlin, Poland and seven more places.
1 in 71 girls born in Scotland in 2025
Scotland 2ndEngland and Wales 4thNorthern Ireland 4th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 23 of the 40 official lists, among them Scotland (2nd), England and Wales (4th) and Northern Ireland (4th).
Show all 23 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 1st 2025 | 179 | rank only |
| Scotland | 2nd 2025 | 253 | 1 in 71 |
| South Australia state | 2nd 2025 | 94 | rank only |
| Queensland state | 3rd 2025 | 254 | rank only |
| England and Wales | 4th 2025 | 1,959 | 1 in 129 |
| New South Wales state | 4th 2025 | 317 | rank only |
| Northern Ireland | 4th 2025 | 97 | 1 in 75 |
| Victoria state | 5th 2025 | 309 | rank only |
| British Columbia province | 5th 2023 | 120 | about 1 in 100 |
| Ontario province | 10th 2024 | 357 | about 1 in 153 |
| Ireland | 13th 2025 | 203 | 1 in 104 |
| Quebec province | 297th 2025 | 18 | about 1 in 1,445 |
| Berlin city | 465th 2023 | 6 | about 1 in 2,417 |
| Poland | 583rd 2025 | 3 | 1 in 39,929 |
| Catalonia region | 604th 2025 | 4 | 1 in 4,818 |
| Switzerland | 617th 2025 | 10 | 1 in 3,399 |
| The Netherlands | 626th 2025 | 19 | about 1 in 3,211 |
| Cologne city | 630th 2023 | 1 | about 1 in 6,143 |
| Sweden | 699th 2025 | 7 | about 1 in 5,738 |
| France | 2317th 2025 | 10 | 1 in 28,679 |
| Italy | 2927th 2024 | 2 | 1 in 89,585 |
| Nova Scotia province | 9th 2025 | 23 | rank only |
| Finland | 10th 2025 | 199 | rank only |
Rare, below the listed names: Austria, Munich, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock, Norway, Spain, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Denmark (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), SmartStart (New Zealand); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); SA Attorney-General's Department, Births, Deaths and Marriages (data.sa.gov.au) (South Australia); Queensland Registry of BDM (Qld Open Data Portal) (Queensland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); NSW Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages (Data.NSW) (New South Wales); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Registry of BDM Victoria (DataVic) (Victoria); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); Idescat (Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya) (Catalonia); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Nova Scotia Vital Statistics (data.novascotia.ca) (Nova Scotia); Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV) (Finland). How we count, and every source
About the name
Isla is a twentieth-century coinage, taken from an old spelling of Islay, an island in the Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland. The island's Scottish Gaelic name probably predates the Indo-European languages of the region, and what it originally meant is unknown, so Isla carries a sense of place rather than a dictionary definition.
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Said EYE-luh, it has two light syllables and a silent s, the one detail people sometimes trip over. Islay keeps the island's own spelling, and Iona, named for another Hebridean island, has a similar feel.
Few girls' names are more popular in the English-speaking world right now. Isla is first in New Zealand, second in Scotland and near the top in South Australia, and it has also reached the top ten in Finland. In Canada it first appeared early this century and peaked around 2021.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- EYE-luh, 2 syllables
- Origin
- English and Scottish Gaelic
- Other spellings
- Iona
- Islay
- Island
Etymology
Coined in the 20th century from an archaic spelling of Islay, a Hebridean island. Islay is from Scottish Gaelic Ile, probably of non-Indo-European origin; its meaning is uncertain.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 3 of 17 regions, falling in 3.
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Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Scotland | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Northern Ireland | 12 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 4 |
| Ireland | 53 | 40 | 37 | 34 | 26 | 17 | 17 | 11 | 13 | 13 |
| Ontario | 19 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 10 | |
| British Columbia | 14 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | ||
| Nova Scotia | 11 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 9 | |
| New South Wales | 9 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| Victoria | 6 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 5 |
| Queensland | 6 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| South Australia | 8 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| New Zealand | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Quebec | 402 | 601 | 559 | 472 | 300 | 257 | 432 | 268 | 412 | 297 |
| France | 2573 | 3622 | 3591 | 2530 | 2508 | 2509 | 2504 | 3521 | 1841 | 2317 |
| The Netherlands | 833 | 816 | 626 | |||||||
| Switzerland | 804 | 822 | 1033 | 773 | 639 | 587 | 679 | 794 | 995 | 617 |
| Berlin | 1432 | 657 | 668 | 978 | 812 | 969 | 465 | |||
| Sweden | 572 | 689 | 900 | 887 | 699 | |||||
| Finland | 5 | 6 | 10 | 5 | 10 | |||||
| Catalonia | 541 | 433 | 604 | |||||||
| Italy | 957 | 1565 | 2927 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 | 1,959 | 773.4 |
| 2024 | 4 | 2,056 | 796.9 |
| 2023 | 3 | 2,337 | 910.9 |
| 2022 | 3 | 2,613 | 991.6 |
| 2021 | 3 | 2,683 | 979.0 |
| 2020 | 3 | 2,749 | 1,024.2 |
| 2019 | 3 | 2,981 | 1,064.4 |
| 2018 | 4 | 3,046 | 1,056.6 |
| 2017 | 3 | 3,373 | 1,127.8 |
| 2016 | 4 | 3,480 | 1,133.0 |
| 2015 | 4 | 3,474 | 1,128.2 |
| 2014 | 3 | 4,016 | 1,309.6 |
| 2013 | 5 | 3,526 | 1,143.1 |
| 2012 | 8 | 3,501 | 1,087.1 |
| 2011 | 15 | 2,849 | 886.7 |
| 2010 | 22 | 2,384 | 742.6 |
| 2009 | 30 | 1,908 | 608.8 |
| 2008 | 36 | 1,599 | 506.4 |
| 2007 | 65 | 964 | 314.9 |
| 2006 | 93 | 575 | 192.2 |
| 2005 | 125 | 432 | 149.9 |
| 2004 | 168 | 311 | 108.8 |
| 2003 | 200 | 233 | 83.6 |
| 2002 | 276 | 142 | 53.1 |
| 2001 | 317 | 115 | 42.9 |
| 2000 | 297 | 125 | 45.8 |
| 1999 | 286 | 124 | 44.0 |
| 1998 | 369 | 87 | 30.1 |
| 1997 | 380 | 84 | 28.7 |
| 1996 | 382 | 87 | 29.4 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Ontario and British Columbia since 1925
Half of the babies named Isla in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 2018. First recorded in 2002. Her peak year there: 2021, at 925.9 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Isla per 100,000 girls born in Ontario and British Columbia, by five-year period. Her 2021 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (1917-2024), OGL-Ontario; BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (1924-2023), OGL-BC.
Sister names for Isla
1 in 109 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 138 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 143 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 124 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla. Same first letter as Isla.
1 in 141 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 92 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 127 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 142 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 166 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Isla.
1 in 459 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Isla.
Middle names for Isla
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Isla Grace
2-1 beats · initials IG
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Isla Olivia
2-4 beats · initials IO · Isla slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Isla slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Isla Sophia
2-3 beats · initials IS
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Isla Maria
2-3 beats · initials IM
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Isla Rose
2-1 beats · initials IR
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Isla Emily
2-3 beats · initials IE · Isla slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Isla slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Isla Julia
2-3 beats · initials IJ
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Isla Miriam
2-3 beats · initials IM
Changes the beat after Isla: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Isla
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 138 in Scotland
98% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 143 in Scotland
97% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 459 in Scotland
97% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 127 in Scotland
96% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 142 in England and Wales
96% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 596 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 542 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
1 in 140 in Northern Ireland
95% alike: moves with Isla across countries and decades.
Famous people named Isla
Isla Fisher.
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Australian actress and author (born 1976)
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Isla
4 questions, on how popular she is, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
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How popular is Isla?
Her best rank is No. 1 in New Zealand in 2025. She is in the published lists of 23 of our 40 regions.
How do you pronounce Isla?
EYE-luh, with 2 syllables.
Is Isla getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 3 of 17 regions, falling in 3.
Which sister names go with Isla?
The deck's top five sisters for Isla: Ellie, Harper, Willow, Ivy and Aria. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.