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Kala as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Kala

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The baby name Kala is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced KAH-lah (/ˈkɑːlə/),occasionally KAY-lah (/ˈkeɪlə/) in Anglicized usage.

Kala is English, Hawaiian, Hindi, Sanskrit in Origin.

Gender: Female
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: English, Hawaiian, Hindi, Sanskrit
Pronunciation: KAH-lah (/ˈkɑːlə/),occasionally KAY-lah (/ˈkeɪlə/) in Anglicized usage

What is the meaning of the name Kala ?

The baby name Kala is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced KAH-lah (/ˈkɑːlə/),occasionally KAY-lah (/ˈkeɪlə/) in Anglicized usage.

Kala is English, Hawaiian, Hindi, Sanskrit in Origin.

Kala is a cross-cultural given name with several distinct roots. In South Asia it reflects Sanskrit kalā (कला), “art, skill, a performing art” and by extension “talent,” widely used as a feminine name in Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam. A related Sanskrit form kāla (काल) means “time” and “black,” an epithet of Shiva, giving the name mythic depth. In Hawaiian, kala means “to free, forgive” (kālā, with a long ā, is “money”), and is used for all genders. In Hebrew contexts Kala/Kalla echoes kallah (כלה), “bride.” English speakers also meet Kala as a streamlined variant of Calla, the lily (ultimately from Greek kallos, “beauty”), or as a Kayla-adjacent spelling.

Usage spans Indian classical-arts circles, longstanding Hawaiian use, and modest U.S. popularity in the 1980s–90s. Variants and relatives include Kalā, Kalla, Calla, and Kayla; short forms may be Kal. Meanings cluster around art, beauty, time, forgiveness, and purity.

Kala has the following similar or variant Names

Kala – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
MV Girls 0 #35 1 2,021
PR 0 #55 1 1,497
IN 0 #71 1 2,963
AF 0 #76 1 1,883
MV Boys 0 #79 1 3,375
JM 0 #93 1 3,714
QA 0 #105 2 7,011
BN Girls 0 #114 1 5,459
HU 0 #115 1 1,675
OM 0 #118 4 6,215
EE Boys 0 #120 6 2,087
KW 0 #120 2 5,216
EC 0 #121 1 2,502
CY Girls 0 #125 1 3,755
CY Boys 0 #131 1 3,473
IQ 0 #133 1 3,533
BN Boys 0 #136 4 6,332
MU 0 #137 1 3,613
EE Girls 0 #142 1 1,888
BW Girls 0 #151 1 4,216
BW Boys 0 #154 1 4,685
HU Boys 0 #174 1 3,954
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
AE 0 #181 7 10,220
UY 0 #181 2 2,477
PL 0 #202 11 2,600
BD 0 #209 19 5,992
SI Boys 0 #211 1 3,402
LU Boys 0 #220 1 4,970
AL Girls 0 #227 1 4,141
BG Girls 0 #229 3 3,559
NA Girls 0 #233 5 7,146
MO Boys 0 #234 1 5,842
NA Boys 0 #247 7 6,830
GH 0 #248 1 5,396
AO Boys 0 #249 1 5,568
JP Girls 0 #249 3 6,592
PT 0 #250 1 4,161
TW Boys 0 #253 4 7,111
MO Girls 0 #258 6 7,056
QA Girls 0 #264 53 15,378
GR Boys 0 #269 5 6,912
JM Girls 0 #270 9 7,507
AF Boys 0 #271 4 3,535
NG 0 #271 2 5,926
SG 0 #274 9 11,010
OM Girls 0 #280 117 15,987
Canada Girls 2021 #286 5 2,910
TW Girls 0 #287 3 8,139
HR Girls 0 #291 4 3,687
KZ Boys 0 #292 5 6,578
KW Girls 0 #296 228 19,177
JP Boys 0 #300 4 7,909
AL Boys 0 #301 3 5,122
SA 0 #308 5 10,560
MY 0 #318 13 12,352
PL Girls 0 #319 36 5,096
DK Girls 0 #323 7 7,429
CN Boys 0 #330 2 9,639
JO Girls 0 #331 9 7,570
DK Boys 0 #332 1 7,401
GH Girls 0 #335 3 6,973
PL Boys 0 #340 1 6,459
GH Boys 0 #353 9 8,138
HK 0 #354 4 8,483
CN Girls 0 #357 3 8,829
MU Girls 0 #357 6 8,539
SD Girls 0 #358 1 7,678
MU Boys 0 #367 3 8,477
PH Boys 0 #374 10 11,440
BD Girls 0 #375 12 8,413
PT Boys 0 #375 7 7,951
JO Boys 0 #381 9 7,057
IN Girls 0 #390 260 13,121
YE 0 #392 7 8,639
France Girls 2018 #400 3 3,265
BO 0 #408 1 6,868
Finland Boys 0 #409 19 2,041
UY Boys 0 #410 4 5,922
PH Girls 0 #428 2 13,098
AE Girls 0 #430 124 20,968
BH 0 #434 120 17,937
MY Girls 0 #438 703 24,821
MX 0 #445 1 8,339
SG Girls 0 #452 135 18,916
SD Boys 0 #463 4 10,523
PT Girls 0 #469 3 7,952
ZA 0 #474 1 14,421
IQ Girls 0 #481 24 11,303
AR Boys 0 #482 2 7,628
BD Boys 0 #482 95 10,045
GT Boys 0 #499 1 7,625
CR Boys 0 #504 7 10,188
PA Boys 0 #504 2 9,305
CO 0 #509 2 7,768
PS Girls 0 #511 13 10,981
PA Girls 0 #514 5 9,861
HK Boys 0 #516 12 12,905
CR Girls 0 #519 14 11,342
RU Girls 0 #521 3 11,913
LY 0 #524 12 12,703
UY Girls 0 #531 6 6,731
CM Boys 0 #535 16 12,054
GT Girls 0 #540 2 7,500
IR Girls 0 #545 1 8,334
CM Girls 0 #552 9 11,671
IR Boys 0 #560 6 10,162
KW Boys 0 #560 213 18,755
PS Boys 0 #561 1 10,655
QA Boys 0 #574 134 18,093
HK Girls 0 #577 39 16,104
IL Girls 0 #604 14 11,648
BO Boys 0 #621 2 9,244
AR Girls 0 #622 9 8,289
IL Boys 0 #624 2 10,983
LB 0 #628 31 13,263
BO Girls 0 #649 3 9,488
IQ Boys 0 #654 14 13,071
SG Boys 0 #654 44 17,960
OM Boys 0 #658 225 17,948
SA Girls 0 #662 275 25,931
AE Boys 0 #674 450 22,615
CL Boys 0 #697 4 13,390
IN Boys 0 #730 284 16,750
SY 0 #759 9 11,684
NG Girls 0 #771 16 15,093
TN 0 #807 23 13,765
Germany Girls 0 #826 13 4,949
CL Girls 0 #834 18 14,098
EG Boys 0 #850 37 15,035
United States Boys 2010 #854 6 7,345
Spain Boys 0 #902 29 5,610
United States Girls 2024 #905 12 8,487
SA Boys 0 #908 859 28,008
PE Boys 0 #919 8 14,506
NG Boys 0 #922 30 16,906
PE Girls 0 #931 13 14,861
Germany Boys 0 #938 15 5,697
NL Boys 0 #941 11 5,873
NL Girls 0 #944 12 5,933
EG Girls 0 #949 11 14,742
MX Boys 0 #956 27 16,355
Spain Girls 0 #967 17 5,561
CO Boys 0 #973 9 15,656
MY Boys 0 #974 138 25,439
BR Girls 0 #992 1 12,708
DZ 0 #1,037 140 20,130
CO Girls 0 #1,057 22 16,140
MA 0 #1,059 70 20,986
ZA Girls 0 #1,112 30 25,928
ZA Boys 0 #1,127 52 25,619
MX Girls 0 #1,136 48 17,781
TR 0 #1,185 27 19,440
IT Boys 0 #1,198 275 10,046
IT Girls 0 #1,418 29 9,415

Kala is popular in 79 countries — most recent births per country:

United States
Canada
AE
AF
AL

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People also ask about Kala

Kala is predominantly a girl's name.
Kala is a 2 syllable name, pronounced KAH-lah (/ˈkɑːlə/),occasionally KAY-lah (/ˈkeɪlə/) in Anglicized usage.
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Kalā (Sanskrit transliteration), Kalaa, Kalah and Kalla.
Across languages, Kala has these equivalents: Arti (Sanskrit — 'art', similar meaning), Melanie (Greek — 'black', similar meaning), Karla (Germanic — similar sound/used interchangeably in some regions).
Yes — Kala ranked #286 in Canada in 2021, and appears in official birth registries across 3 countries.
Kala ranks highest in Canada (#286 in 2021).
Kala's popularity is rising significantly. It moved from #919 in 2014 to #905 in 2024 in United States.