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#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201959peak #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 1959

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #8 for girls · 44 births · 1 in 58 girlsAKMaine: #8 for girls · 168 births · 1 in 59 girlsMEVermont: #12 for girls · 55 births · 1 in 65 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #15 for girls · 82 births · 1 in 67 girlsNHWashington: #20 for girls · 307 births · 1 in 93 girlsWAIdaho: #12 for girls · 94 births · 1 in 68 girlsIDMontana: #8 for girls · 100 births · 1 in 68 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #12 for girls · 107 births · 1 in 65 girlsNDMinnesota: #12 for girls · 547 births · 1 in 73 girlsMNIllinois: #11 for girls · 1,449 births · 1 in 75 girlsILWisconsin: #16 for girls · 591 births · 1 in 75 girlsWIMichigan: #10 for girls · 1,288 births · 1 in 70 girlsMINew York: #26 for girls · 1,280 births · 1 in 132 girlsNYMassachusetts: #19 for girls · 592 births · 1 in 90 girlsMARhode Island: #24 for girls · 83 births · 1 in 100 girlsRIOregon: #22 for girls · 156 births · 1 in 98 girlsORNevada: #20 for girls · 25 births · 1 in 86 girlsNVWyoming: #20 for girls · 33 births · 1 in 85 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #10 for girls · 113 births · 1 in 64 girlsSDIowa: #14 for girls · 400 births · 1 in 72 girlsIAIndiana: #7 for girls · 858 births · 1 in 58 girlsINOhio: #7 for girls · 1,714 births · 1 in 62 girlsOHPennsylvania: #19 for girls · 1,254 births · 1 in 91 girlsPANew Jersey: #28 for girls · 424 births · 1 in 135 girlsNJConnecticut: #17 for girls · 323 births · 1 in 76 girlsCTCalifornia: #14 for girls · 1,853 births · 1 in 90 girlsCAUtah: #25 for girls · 88 births · 1 in 117 girlsUTColorado: #15 for girls · 228 births · 1 in 83 girlsCONebraska: #8 for girls · 261 births · 1 in 56 girlsNEMissouri: #7 for girls · 727 births · 1 in 62 girlsMOKentucky: #7 for girls · 601 births · 1 in 55 girlsKYWest Virginia: #3 for girls · 423 births · 1 in 43 girlsWVVirginia: #13 for girls · 634 births · 1 in 64 girlsVAMaryland: #12 for girls · 415 births · 1 in 73 girlsMDDelaware: #24 for girls · 45 births · 1 in 103 girlsDEArizona: #25 for girls · 125 births · 1 in 115 girlsAZNew Mexico: #18 for girls · 112 births · 1 in 107 girlsNMKansas: #8 for girls · 360 births · 1 in 60 girlsKSArkansas: #13 for girls · 273 births · 1 in 65 girlsARTennessee: #5 for girls · 729 births · 1 in 50 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #10 for girls · 794 births · 1 in 62 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #15 for girls · 346 births · 1 in 77 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #10 for girls · 210 births · 1 in 63 girlsDCOklahoma: #11 for girls · 330 births · 1 in 65 girlsOKLouisiana: #9 for girls · 571 births · 1 in 69 girlsLAMississippi: #16 for girls · 274 births · 1 in 95 girlsMSAlabama: #10 for girls · 561 births · 1 in 63 girlsALGeorgia: #9 for girls · 694 births · 1 in 64 girlsGAHawaii: #15 for girls · 64 births · 1 in 95 girlsHITexas: #14 for girls · 1,245 births · 1 in 91 girlsTXFlorida: #14 for girls · 664 births · 1 in 74 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. West Virginia#3 · 1 in 43
  2. Tennessee#5 · 1 in 50
  3. Kentucky#7 · 1 in 55
  4. Indiana#7 · 1 in 58
  5. Ohio#7 · 1 in 62

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

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
West Virginia#34231 in 43
Tennessee#57291 in 50
Indiana#78581 in 58
Kentucky#76011 in 55
Missouri#77271 in 62
Ohio#71,7141 in 62
Alaska#8441 in 58
Kansas#83601 in 60
Maine#81681 in 59
Montana#81001 in 68
Nebraska#82611 in 56
Georgia#96941 in 64
Louisiana#95711 in 69
Alabama#105611 in 63
District of Columbia#102101 in 63
Michigan#101,2881 in 70
North Carolina#107941 in 62
South Dakota#101131 in 64
Illinois#111,4491 in 75
Oklahoma#113301 in 65
Idaho#12941 in 68
Maryland#124151 in 73
Minnesota#125471 in 73
North Dakota#121071 in 65
Vermont#12551 in 65
Arkansas#132731 in 65
Virginia#136341 in 64
California#141,8531 in 90
Florida#146641 in 74
Iowa#144001 in 72
Texas#141,2451 in 91
Colorado#152281 in 83
Hawaii#15641 in 95
New Hampshire#15821 in 67
South Carolina#153461 in 77
Mississippi#162741 in 95
Wisconsin#165911 in 75
Connecticut#173231 in 76
New Mexico#181121 in 107
Massachusetts#195921 in 90
Pennsylvania#191,2541 in 91
Nevada#20251 in 86
Washington#203071 in 93
Wyoming#20331 in 85
Oregon#221561 in 98
Delaware#24451 in 103
Rhode Island#24831 in 100
Arizona#251251 in 115
Utah#25881 in 117
New York#261,2801 in 132
New Jersey#284241 in 135

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 1959

girls
#12
24,714 births · 1 in 82 girls
boys
#1,265
38 births · 1 in 56,172 boys

Top girls' names in 1959

  1. #1Mary54,502
  2. #2Susan41,617
  3. #3Linda40,410
  4. #4Karen36,784
  5. #5Donna36,468
  6. #6Patricia35,223
  7. #7Debra31,388
  8. #8Cynthia30,186
  9. #9Deborah29,546
  10. #10Lisa25,699
  11. #12Pamela24,714

Top boys' names in 1959

  1. #1Michael85,294
  2. #2David83,977
  3. #3James78,648
  4. #4John76,446
  5. #5Robert74,542
  6. #6Mark56,945
  7. #7William51,386
  8. #8Richard47,202
  9. #9Thomas40,296
  10. #10Steven33,597
  11. #1,265Pamela38
More about 1959

girls

2,023,462 girls got a published name in 1959; 1 in 82 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 99.8% of the 7,202 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.9% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #9Deborah29,546
  2. #10Lisa25,699
  3. #11Barbara25,359
  4. #12Pamela24,714
  5. #13Sandra23,359
  6. #14Nancy23,079
  7. #15Kathy21,814
Biggest movers since 1958
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,090Alesia#1,985 → #895
  2. ↑ 948Tori#1,791 → #843
  3. ↑ 440Taryn#1,211 → #771
  4. ↑ 437Venus#1,007 → #570
  5. ↑ 393Vilma#1,364 → #971
Fallers
  1. ↓ 283Dani#961 → #1,244
  2. ↓ 257Nicki#973 → #1,230
  3. ↓ 235Lanita#973 → #1,208
  4. ↓ 219Concetta#973 → #1,192
  5. ↓ 197Gisele#766 → #963

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

boys

2,134,518 boys got a published name in 1959; 1 in 56,172 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 72.3% of the 4,572 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 29.4% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #1,247Teresa39
  2. #1,247Truman39
  3. #1,247Tyron39
  4. #1,265Pamela38
  5. #1,265Angus38
  6. #1,265Bertrand38
  7. #1,265Doran38
  8. #1,280Cristobal37
  9. #1,280Cullen37
  10. #1,280Franky37

Tied with 14 names at #1,265; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1958
Risers
  1. ↑ 2,208Efrem#3,033 → #825
  2. ↑ 901Darin#1,677 → #776
  3. ↑ 871Yancy#1,557 → #686
  4. ↑ 708Raynard#1,677 → #969
  5. ↑ 644Darrin#1,396 → #752
Fallers
  1. ↓ 307Jace#761 → #1,068
  2. ↓ 241Otha#915 → #1,156
  3. ↓ 234Cheryl#994 → #1,228
  4. ↓ 230Dann#969 → #1,199
  5. ↓ 227Carnell#777 → #1,004

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

See the top 100 for 1959 →