Given name & surname
Isla
“from the island”
Isla is used as a given name and a surname. One interpretation is “from the island.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One interpretation is “from the island.”
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1886. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Isla through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 58,271
- 19 boys · 58,252 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 6,019 babies
- 2025
- 6,019
- #28 for girls · #10,084 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +58%
- Rising fast
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6,012 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 28 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 58.4% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 7 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (606). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 24,788 as a first name in 2020; 740 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Isla’s family of names
Isla has a masculine form in Islay. Isla has a related form in Islae. Isla has a related form in Islay.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 6
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 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Isla
- Isla FisherAustralian actress and author (born 1976)
- Isla BlairBritish actressborn 1944
- Isla Phillipsgranddaughter of Anne, Princess Royal; great-granddaughter of Elizabeth IIborn 2012
- Isla BevanBritish actress (1910-1976)
- Isla CameronBritish actor and singer1927–1980
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Isla, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Orla
“the golden queen”
>99% girls
Sloane
“a strong protector; a woman warrior”
1% boys · 99% girls
Lucy
“light”
>99% girls
Maisie
“pearl”
>99% girls
Imogen
“a maiden” · “one who is innocent and pure”
>99% girls
Nola
“one who is fair; a white-shouldered woman” · “a champion of the people”
>99% girls
Blair
“from the field of battle”
6% boys · 94% girls
Maeve
“intoxicating, she who makes drunk” · “an intoxicating woman”
>99% girls