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#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201954peak #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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1882——
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 1954

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #10 for girls · 48 births · 1 in 51 girlsAKMaine: #7 for girls · 188 births · 1 in 50 girlsMEVermont: #9 for girls · 66 births · 1 in 54 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #10 for girls · 113 births · 1 in 45 girlsNHWashington: #8 for girls · 559 births · 1 in 51 girlsWAIdaho: #7 for girls · 132 births · 1 in 49 girlsIDMontana: #13 for girls · 95 births · 1 in 72 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #10 for girls · 144 births · 1 in 50 girlsNDMinnesota: #15 for girls · 511 births · 1 in 70 girlsMNIllinois: #10 for girls · 1,756 births · 1 in 57 girlsILWisconsin: #14 for girls · 601 births · 1 in 69 girlsWIMichigan: #10 for girls · 1,542 births · 1 in 57 girlsMINew York: #21 for girls · 1,398 births · 1 in 115 girlsNYMassachusetts: #17 for girls · 604 births · 1 in 83 girlsMARhode Island: #27 for girls · 81 births · 1 in 106 girlsRIOregon: #10 for girls · 277 births · 1 in 58 girlsORNevada: #9 for girls · 35 births · 1 in 53 girlsNVWyoming: #11 for girls · 58 births · 1 in 55 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #6 for girls · 157 births · 1 in 47 girlsSDIowa: #10 for girls · 543 births · 1 in 51 girlsIAIndiana: #6 for girls · 1,125 births · 1 in 43 girlsINOhio: #9 for girls · 2,038 births · 1 in 50 girlsOHPennsylvania: #20 for girls · 1,174 births · 1 in 96 girlsPANew Jersey: #22 for girls · 456 births · 1 in 115 girlsNJConnecticut: #16 for girls · 302 births · 1 in 72 girlsCTCalifornia: #9 for girls · 2,184 births · 1 in 66 girlsCAUtah: #6 for girls · 180 births · 1 in 55 girlsUTColorado: #10 for girls · 300 births · 1 in 58 girlsCONebraska: #9 for girls · 311 births · 1 in 46 girlsNEMissouri: #9 for girls · 802 births · 1 in 54 girlsMOKentucky: #9 for girls · 636 births · 1 in 54 girlsKYWest Virginia: #7 for girls · 444 births · 1 in 47 girlsWVVirginia: #14 for girls · 570 births · 1 in 71 girlsVAMaryland: #13 for girls · 411 births · 1 in 69 girlsMDDelaware: #19 for girls · 48 births · 1 in 82 girlsDEArizona: #13 for girls · 132 births · 1 in 89 girlsAZNew Mexico: #9 for girls · 154 births · 1 in 69 girlsNMKansas: #9 for girls · 404 births · 1 in 54 girlsKSArkansas: #14 for girls · 274 births · 1 in 71 girlsARTennessee: #9 for girls · 708 births · 1 in 55 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #10 for girls · 850 births · 1 in 61 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #17 for girls · 317 births · 1 in 93 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #8 for girls · 241 births · 1 in 55 girlsDCOklahoma: #6 for girls · 472 births · 1 in 48 girlsOKLouisiana: #13 for girls · 486 births · 1 in 78 girlsLAMississippi: #16 for girls · 271 births · 1 in 104 girlsMSAlabama: #13 for girls · 461 births · 1 in 80 girlsALGeorgia: #10 for girls · 635 births · 1 in 72 girlsGAHawaii: #18 for girls · 67 births · 1 in 88 girlsHITexas: #11 for girls · 1,471 births · 1 in 76 girlsTXFlorida: #14 for girls · 529 births · 1 in 71 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. Indiana#6 · 1 in 43
  2. South Dakota#6 · 1 in 47
  3. Oklahoma#6 · 1 in 48
  4. Utah#6 · 1 in 55
  5. West Virginia#7 · 1 in 47

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

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Indiana#61,1251 in 43
Oklahoma#64721 in 48
South Dakota#61571 in 47
Utah#61801 in 55
Idaho#71321 in 49
Maine#71881 in 50
West Virginia#74441 in 47
District of Columbia#82411 in 55
Washington#85591 in 51
California#92,1841 in 66
Kansas#94041 in 54
Kentucky#96361 in 54
Missouri#98021 in 54
Nebraska#93111 in 46
Nevada#9351 in 53
New Mexico#91541 in 69
Ohio#92,0381 in 50
Tennessee#97081 in 55
Vermont#9661 in 54
Alaska#10481 in 51
Colorado#103001 in 58
Georgia#106351 in 72
Illinois#101,7561 in 57
Iowa#105431 in 51
Michigan#101,5421 in 57
New Hampshire#101131 in 45
North Carolina#108501 in 61
North Dakota#101441 in 50
Oregon#102771 in 58
Texas#111,4711 in 76
Wyoming#11581 in 55
Alabama#134611 in 80
Arizona#131321 in 89
Louisiana#134861 in 78
Maryland#134111 in 69
Montana#13951 in 72
Arkansas#142741 in 71
Florida#145291 in 71
Virginia#145701 in 71
Wisconsin#146011 in 69
Minnesota#155111 in 70
Connecticut#163021 in 72
Mississippi#162711 in 104
Massachusetts#176041 in 83
South Carolina#173171 in 93
Hawaii#18671 in 88
Delaware#19481 in 82
Pennsylvania#201,1741 in 96
New York#211,3981 in 115
New Jersey#224561 in 115
Rhode Island#27811 in 106

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 1954

girls
#12
27,361 births · 1 in 71 girls
boys
#1,227
37 births · 1 in 55,101 boys

Top girls' names in 1954

  1. #1Mary68,019
  2. #2Linda55,371
  3. #3Deborah54,674
  4. #4Patricia49,149
  5. #5Susan47,162
  6. #6Debra45,896
  7. #7Barbara36,368
  8. #8Karen32,456
  9. #9Nancy30,270
  10. #10Cynthia27,615
  11. #12Pamela27,361

Top boys' names in 1954

  1. #1Michael88,568
  2. #2Robert86,331
  3. #3James86,311
  4. #4John81,168
  5. #5David79,556
  6. #6William61,426
  7. #7Richard57,042
  8. #8Thomas47,159
  9. #9Gary37,920
  10. #10Charles37,463
  11. #1,227Pamela37
More about 1954

girls

1,941,915 girls got a published name in 1954; 1 in 71 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 99.8% of the 6,625 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #9Nancy30,270
  2. #10Cynthia27,615
  3. #11Donna27,429
  4. #12Pamela27,361
  5. #13Sandra26,061
  6. #14Kathleen22,455
  7. #15Carol22,247
Biggest movers since 1953
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,699Sherree#2,699 → #1,000
  2. ↑ 1,434Sabrina#2,236 → #802
  3. ↑ 932Valinda#1,738 → #806
  4. ↑ 748Sheree#1,071 → #323
  5. ↑ 421Sherie#1,248 → #827
Fallers
  1. ↓ 396Enola#948 → #1,344
  2. ↓ 311Ila#782 → #1,093
  3. ↓ 302Nancie#816 → #1,118
  4. ↓ 282Arline#904 → #1,186
  5. ↓ 269Candyce#944 → #1,213

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

boys

2,038,751 boys got a published name in 1954; 1 in 55,101 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 71.9% of the 4,360 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 32.5% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #1,213Tedd38
  2. #1,213Willian38
  3. #1,213Winfield38
  4. #1,227Pamela37
  5. #1,227Antoine37
  6. #1,227Chet37
  7. #1,227Daryle37
  8. #1,242Adan36
  9. #1,242Betty36
  10. #1,242Candelario36

Tied with 14 names at #1,227; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1953
Risers
  1. ↑ 592Ricci#1,331 → #739
  2. ↑ 470Demetrius#1,357 → #887
  3. ↑ 382Crawford#1,378 → #996
  4. ↑ 310Gavin#1,139 → #829
  5. ↑ 296Dino#1,058 → #762
Fallers
  1. ↓ 504Arlin#878 → #1,382
  2. ↓ 347Adan#895 → #1,242
  3. ↓ 345Dayton#966 → #1,311
  4. ↓ 302Garey#966 → #1,268
  5. ↓ 293Bartholomew#975 → #1,268

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

See the top 100 for 1954 →