Pamela

#2,239 for girls in 2025, 82 births · Last seen for boys in 2004 at #11,356
Given to girls 99.8% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1953 · 25,760 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
39 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
595,076
since 1895

Pamela over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201951peak #10, 1953girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#2,23982—
2024#2,15088—
2023#1,934102—
2022#2,03495—
2021#1,801112—
2020#1,668123—
2019#1,495146—
2018#1,585136—
2017#1,451155—
2016#1,300184—
2015#1,399167—
2014#1,289185—
2013#1,171205—
2012#1,148215—
2011#961266—
2010#983258—
2009#842331—
2008#671455—
2007#582516—
2006#532568—
2005#618457—
2004#527540#11,3565
2003#446673—
2002#517530—
2001#483578—
2000#457607—
1999#421655#9,9125
1998#388714—
1997#359770—
1996#341814—
1995#385687—
1994#352748—
1993#324806#6,8167
1992#301920#8,4355
1991#2591,085#6,5197
1990#2381,194#4,67311
1989#1991,331#4,27112
1988#1841,510#5,7517
1987#1531,784#3,95911
1986#1382,016#5,3327
1985#1162,468#3,80511
1984#1042,642#4,5528
1983#913,029#3,88410
1982#823,546#2,83116
1981#763,881#3,41212
1980#863,533#4,9407
1979#903,365#3,16813
1978#1092,690#4,1578
1977#1022,830#2,91014
1976#843,364#2,24520
1975#704,177#2,45017
1974#545,272#2,05021
1973#475,813#2,03620
1972#347,472#1,96621
1971#2810,149#1,27243
1970#2612,907#1,15951
1969#2413,355#98960
1968#2014,031#1,20640
1967#1715,368#1,04349
1966#1516,249#1,21638
1965#1217,467#1,27136
1964#1119,823#1,21940
1963#1420,593#94763
1962#1321,270#1,31135
1961#1521,691#1,13648
1960#1422,092#1,05853
1959#1224,714#1,26538
1958#1125,279#1,00158
1957#1225,015#1,10048
1956#1226,928#1,19341
1955#1226,690#1,21938
1954#1227,361#1,22737
1953#1025,760#1,33132
1952#1720,879#1,34731
1951#1618,570#1,43027
1950#1716,202#1,39527
1949#2115,132#1,54423
1948#2214,281#1,37828
1947#2812,398#1,39428
1946#349,367#1,40925
1945#426,169#1,85214
1944#446,204#1,40023
1943#544,839#1,52921
1942#1062,632#2,5239
1941#1551,468#2,8727
1940#251631—
1939#347337—
1938#369314—
1937#399264—
1936#434220—
1935#458194—
1934#535147—
1933#629108—
1932#69296—
1931#66799—
1930#71794—
1929#666110—
1928#703100—
1927#91167—
1926#84376—
1925#86175—
1924#1,09651—
1923#1,07650—
1922#1,26938—
1921#1,40933—
1920#1,58427—
1919#1,74522—
1918#2,02918—
1917#1,99617—
1916#2,49812—
1915#1,57122—
1914#1,89613—
1913#1,46516—
1912#1,29717—
1911#1,7928—
1910#2,3985—
1909——
1908——
1907——
1906#1,7276—
1905——
1904#1,8775—
1903——
1902——
1901——
1900——
1899——
1898#1,5026—
1897——
1896——
1895#1,5925—
1894——
1893——
1892——
1891——
1890——
1889——
1888——
1887——
1886——
1885——
1884——
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1881——
1880——
First appearance
1895

The first year at least five girls were named Pamela! It came in at #1,592, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1895–1897, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

Where Pamela is popular in 1951

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #13 for girls · 22 births · 1 in 60 girlsAKMaine: #14 for girls · 146 births · 1 in 60 girlsMEVermont: #15 for girls · 65 births · 1 in 55 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #19 for girls · 66 births · 1 in 77 girlsNHWashington: #13 for girls · 381 births · 1 in 68 girlsWAIdaho: #14 for girls · 87 births · 1 in 71 girlsIDMontana: #21 for girls · 68 births · 1 in 90 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #12 for girls · 121 births · 1 in 57 girlsNDMinnesota: #15 for girls · 440 births · 1 in 81 girlsMNIllinois: #13 for girls · 1,390 births · 1 in 66 girlsILWisconsin: #21 for girls · 426 births · 1 in 92 girlsWIMichigan: #15 for girls · 1,079 births · 1 in 73 girlsMINew York: #25 for girls · 1,083 births · 1 in 138 girlsNYMassachusetts: #30 for girls · 430 births · 1 in 108 girlsMARhode Island: #27 for girls · 72 births · 1 in 110 girlsRIOregon: #15 for girls · 212 births · 1 in 74 girlsORNevada: #15 for girls · 20 births · 1 in 62 girlsNVWyoming: #15 for girls · 42 births · 1 in 66 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #12 for girls · 127 births · 1 in 60 girlsSDIowa: #13 for girls · 461 births · 1 in 64 girlsIAIndiana: #9 for girls · 824 births · 1 in 55 girlsINOhio: #13 for girls · 1,363 births · 1 in 67 girlsOHPennsylvania: #31 for girls · 711 births · 1 in 153 girlsPANew Jersey: #29 for girls · 333 births · 1 in 139 girlsNJConnecticut: #19 for girls · 220 births · 1 in 84 girlsCTCalifornia: #15 for girls · 1,505 births · 1 in 80 girlsCAUtah: #14 for girls · 119 births · 1 in 78 girlsUTColorado: #16 for girls · 183 births · 1 in 85 girlsCONebraska: #17 for girls · 188 births · 1 in 76 girlsNEMissouri: #16 for girls · 559 births · 1 in 74 girlsMOKentucky: #17 for girls · 404 births · 1 in 84 girlsKYWest Virginia: #14 for girls · 320 births · 1 in 72 girlsWVVirginia: #22 for girls · 345 births · 1 in 109 girlsVAMaryland: #24 for girls · 212 births · 1 in 117 girlsMDDelaware: #42 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 166 girlsDEArizona: #20 for girls · 86 births · 1 in 114 girlsAZNew Mexico: #28 for girls · 70 births · 1 in 137 girlsNMKansas: #9 for girls · 354 births · 1 in 55 girlsKSArkansas: #20 for girls · 205 births · 1 in 101 girlsARTennessee: #21 for girls · 406 births · 1 in 93 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #24 for girls · 432 births · 1 in 117 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #40 for girls · 154 births · 1 in 185 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #23 for girls · 119 births · 1 in 107 girlsDCOklahoma: #12 for girls · 359 births · 1 in 60 girlsOKLouisiana: #28 for girls · 273 births · 1 in 130 girlsLAMississippi: #35 for girls · 163 births · 1 in 175 girlsMSAlabama: #33 for girls · 236 births · 1 in 155 girlsALGeorgia: #27 for girls · 305 births · 1 in 141 girlsGAHawaii: #12 for girls · 74 births · 1 in 71 girlsHITexas: #19 for girls · 949 births · 1 in 107 girlsTXFlorida: #17 for girls · 342 births · 1 in 90 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. Indiana#9 · 1 in 55
  2. Kansas#9 · 1 in 55
  3. North Dakota#12 · 1 in 57
  4. South Dakota#12 · 1 in 60
  5. Oklahoma#12 · 1 in 60

Best ever in a state: #3 in West Virginia, 1959.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Indiana#98241 in 55
Kansas#93541 in 55
Hawaii#12741 in 71
North Dakota#121211 in 57
Oklahoma#123591 in 60
South Dakota#121271 in 60
Alaska#13221 in 60
Illinois#131,3901 in 66
Iowa#134611 in 64
Ohio#131,3631 in 67
Washington#133811 in 68
Idaho#14871 in 71
Maine#141461 in 60
Utah#141191 in 78
West Virginia#143201 in 72
California#151,5051 in 80
Michigan#151,0791 in 73
Minnesota#154401 in 81
Nevada#15201 in 62
Oregon#152121 in 74
Vermont#15651 in 55
Wyoming#15421 in 66
Colorado#161831 in 85
Missouri#165591 in 74
Florida#173421 in 90
Kentucky#174041 in 84
Nebraska#171881 in 76
Connecticut#192201 in 84
New Hampshire#19661 in 77
Texas#199491 in 107
Arizona#20861 in 114
Arkansas#202051 in 101
Montana#21681 in 90
Tennessee#214061 in 93
Wisconsin#214261 in 92
Virginia#223451 in 109
District of Columbia#231191 in 107
Maryland#242121 in 117
North Carolina#244321 in 117
New York#251,0831 in 138
Georgia#273051 in 141
Rhode Island#27721 in 110
Louisiana#282731 in 130
New Mexico#28701 in 137
New Jersey#293331 in 139
Massachusetts#304301 in 108
Pennsylvania#317111 in 153
Alabama#332361 in 155
Mississippi#351631 in 175
South Carolina#401541 in 185
Delaware#42191 in 166

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the girls born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Pamela
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 89 spots since 2024 (#2,150 → #2,239)
  • 571 spots since 2020 (#1,668 → #2,239)
  • 840 spots since 2015 (#1,399 → #2,239)
  • Biggest jump: 235 spots in 1925 (#1,096 → #861)
  • Biggest drop: 187 spots in 2012 (#961 → #1,148)
Rise & fade · girls
58 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1895
  • Peaked 1953 at #10 (25,760 births)
  • Births halved by 1971, 18 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 10 for 1 yr
  • Top 10: 1 yr · 1953
  • Top 100: 39 yrs · run 1943–1976
  • Top 1,000: 87 yrs · run 1925–2011
Share of babies · girls
1 in 71
  • Highest: 1 in 71 girls born in 1954 were named Pamela (1.4%)
  • Latest: 1 in 19,601 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
  • Its best rank, #10 in 1953, was only 1 in 73 (1.4%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1950s
  • 39.9% of all girls named Pamela (237,398) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1890s11#1,502 (1898)#1,547
1900s11#1,727 (1906)#1,802
1910s150#1,297 (1912)#1,869
1920s627#666 (1929)#1,042
1930s1,873#347 (1939)#525
1940s73,121#21 (1949)#76
1950s237,398#10 (1953)#13
1960s181,939#11 (1964)#16
1970s58,039#26 (1970)#64
1980s25,740#76 (1981)#123
1990s8,393#238 (1990)#337
2000s5,255#446 (2003)#568
2010s1,917#961 (2011)#1,278
2020s602#1,668 (2020)#1,971

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Pamela in 1951

girls
#16
18,570 births · 1 in 97 girls
boys
#1,430
27 births · 1 in 69,735 boys

Top girls' names in 1951

  1. #1Linda73,982
  2. #2Mary65,721
  3. #3Patricia56,446
  4. #4Deborah42,053
  5. #5Barbara40,617
  6. #6Susan40,228
  7. #7Nancy30,346
  8. #8Karen27,998
  9. #9Sandra27,665
  10. #10Kathleen26,716
  11. #16Pamela18,570

Top boys' names in 1951

  1. #1James87,256
  2. #2Robert86,353
  3. #3John81,569
  4. #4Michael72,807
  5. #5David64,788
  6. #6William62,781
  7. #7Richard54,541
  8. #8Thomas48,275
  9. #9Charles39,406
  10. #10Gary38,160
  11. #1,430Pamela27
More about 1951

girls

1,800,859 girls got a published name in 1951; 1 in 97 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 99.7% of the 6,213 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #13Sharon23,920
  2. #14Brenda21,717
  3. #15Diane19,840
  4. #16Pamela18,570
  5. #17Margaret17,692
  6. #18Debra17,064
  7. #19Janet16,947
Biggest movers since 1950
Risers
  1. ↑ 345Rhona#1,333 → #988
  2. ↑ 307Bobbi#1,153 → #846
  3. ↑ 296Ricki#1,090 → #794
  4. ↑ 295Mindy#771 → #476
  5. ↑ 288Sharleen#1,053 → #765
Fallers
  1. ↓ 395Sharman#668 → #1,063
  2. ↓ 343Manuela#773 → #1,116
  3. ↓ 294Allie#945 → #1,239
  4. ↓ 253Merrie#937 → #1,190
  5. ↓ 252Olive#891 → #1,143

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,882,837 boys got a published name in 1951; 1 in 69,735 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 66.4% of the 4,253 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #1,407Thurmond28
  2. #1,407Timmothy28
  3. #1,407Winton28
  4. #1,430Pamela27
  5. #1,430Aloysius27
  6. #1,430Bernell27
  7. #1,430Creighton27
  8. #1,462Amador26
  9. #1,462Augusta26
  10. #1,462Avon26

Tied with 31 names at #1,430; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1950
Risers
  1. ↑ 428Kimberly#1,139 → #711
  2. ↑ 372Cole#1,364 → #992
  3. ↑ 357Wayland#1,272 → #915
  4. ↑ 354Ricki#1,139 → #785
  5. ↑ 346Lou#1,289 → #943
Fallers
  1. ↓ 944Jory#960 → #1,904
  2. ↓ 502Samual#960 → #1,462
  3. ↓ 426Carlyle#918 → #1,344
  4. ↓ 319Shaun#899 → #1,218
  5. ↓ 318Tex#977 → #1,295

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1951 →