Given name
Zelah
“side”
Zelah is used as a given name. One Hebrew interpretation is “side.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Hebrew interpretation is “side.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
The story
The name appears in biblical tradition, giving it a longstanding religious and cultural context.
Zelah through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 75
- 0 boys · 75 girls
- Most popular year
- 2019
- 11 babies
- 2025
- 6
- #14,917 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +14%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 14,917 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for girls was 11 in 2019.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Zelah’s family of names
Zelah has a related form in Zela. Zelah has a related form in Zillah.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
Similar names
If you love Zelah, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Zeruiah
“balsam of Yah”
>99% girls
Asherah
“progression” · “happiness”
>99% girls
Ehi
“brotherly” · “my brother”
>99% girls
Merab
“multiplication” · “agent of greatness”
>99% girls
Sheva
“ravage” · “worthless one”
>99% girls
Adaiah
“Yahweh has adorned” · “ornament of the Lord”
16% boys · 84% girls
Moza
“a place of going forth”
>99% girls
Aiah
“falcon”
>99% girls