Mahala means tenderness or dancing — from the Hebrew/Native American. In Hebrew, mahala means dance AND tender. In Cherokee, mahala means woman. Three syllables bridging Hebrew-dance AND Cherokee-woman — the most tenderly dancing.
In Hebrew, dance AND tenderness.In Cherokee, woman.Three syllables with a gentle, Hebrew sound: mah-HAH-lah.Mah and Ala are both embedded.The most dually dancing-AND-woman.
Mahala IS Hebrew for dance/tenderness AND Cherokee for woman — dual bridge.
2
First recorded
Earliest known use: Hebrew/Cherokee.
3
Today
Mahala remains a beloved choice, ranking #5046 in the US. 2,873 babies have been named Mahala since 1880.
◈ Sources: Behind the Name, SSA data
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How popular is Mahala?
2006peak year
Today, Mahala is rarely chosen — ranked well outside the top 1,000 (around #5046), with only about 27 babies given the name per year. But it wasn't always this way. At its peak in 2006, 74 babies were given the name (ranked #2499 nationally). Its strongest stretch was the 2000s. Mahala's usage has held roughly steady recently. In all, around 2,873 babies have been registered as Mahala since 1880.
Year-by-year registrations1880–2024 · U.S. Social Security data
Mahala's Life Path 6 is the nurturer's number — tender nurturing. People named Mahala tend to be gentle, dancing, and gifted at being the Hebrew-Cherokee tender woman.
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