Given name & surname
Darla
“ouf little darling”
Darla is a variant of Darlene. One English interpretation is “ouf little darling.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Darla is a variant of Darlene. One English interpretation is “ouf little darling.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Darla is a variant of Darlene. An origin associated with Darlene is English.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1924. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Darla through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 43,694
- 27 boys · 43,667 girls
- Most popular year
- 1963
- 2,391 babies
- 2025
- 275
- #941 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +31%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 275 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 941 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 31.3% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 2,391 in 1963. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (50). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 34,954 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Darla’s family of names
Darla has a related form in Darlene. In Greek usage, Darla as a surname is a transliteration of Δάρλα.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Darla
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Darla, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Karla
“a small, strong woman” · “a free woman”
>99% girls
Paula
“a petite woman” · “small”
1% boys · 99% girls
Carla
“a free woman” · “a small, strong woman”
>99% girls
Dana
“woran from Denmark” · “dane”
9% boys · 91% girls
Darcy
“having dark features”
6% boys · 94% girls
Gala
“a merrymaker; of the festive party” · “a singer”
>99% girls
Donna
“ruler of the world”
>99% girls
Dea
“resembling a goddess”
>99% girls