Kayla has two parallel origins. As a Yiddish/Hebrew name, it derives from Keila — possibly meaning "crown" or "laurel." As a modern English coining, it combines Kay (Greek "rejoice" or English short of Katherine "pure") with the popular -la ending.
Kayla rose explosively in the 1990s after the introduction of the character Kayla Brady on Days of Our Lives in 1982. It peaked at #11 in 1990. Today Kayla sits in the U.S. top 300.
Kayla reduces to nine — the number of warm clarity.