Rita

#1,285 for girls in 2025, 174 births · Last seen for boys in 1984 at #4,973
Given to girls 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1930 · 5,470 births
Debut · girls
19 births
In top 100 · girls
47 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
284,452
since 1880

Rita over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201946peak #42, 1930girls
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#1,285174—
2024#1,395161—
2023#1,373164—
2022#1,322178—
2021#1,432150—
2020#1,231185—
2019#1,345169—
2018#1,250185—
2017#1,182207—
2016#1,188210—
2015#1,280190—
2014#1,362171—
2013#1,289182—
2012#1,379169—
2011#1,363169—
2010#1,336176—
2009#1,414166—
2008#1,325186—
2007#1,199210—
2006#1,173207—
2005#1,078220—
2004#1,067216—
2003#1,105199—
2002#916244—
2001#846270—
2000#880251—
1999#921229—
1998#862246—
1997#850240—
1996#703303—
1995#707296—
1994#669318—
1993#652342—
1992#588390—
1991#553423—
1990#545434—
1989#549412—
1988#466485—
1987#432518—
1986#408544—
1985#386588—
1984#375607#4,9737
1983#376592—
1982#338709—
1981#284855—
1980#296840#4,1349
1979#277881#6,0565
1978#262892#3,8579
1977#295802—
1976#271859—
1975#272883—
1974#256992—
1973#2481,031—
1972#2301,199#3,9637
1971#2151,418#2,97311
1970#2031,590#2,89111
1969#1841,736—
1968#1592,073#2,57611
1967#1462,380#2,7609
1966#1352,688#2,21613
1965#1263,067#3,2447
1964#1223,470#2,54611
1963#1153,808#2,30013
1962#1104,102#1,96217
1961#1054,532#2,70610
1960#965,027#2,12115
1959#984,952#3,2907
1958#885,340#1,83819
1957#786,018#2,01916
1956#796,054#2,9698
1955#726,094#1,90217
1954#676,536#2,04415
1953#646,284#3,4256
1952#666,148#2,25112
1951#616,415#2,36711
1950#566,424#2,01914
1949#546,653#1,87216
1948#595,835#2,44310
1947#605,982#1,85017
1946#565,533#2,03013
1945#594,282#2,3939
1944#544,530#2,30910
1943#525,011#1,91015
1942#554,706#1,86715
1941#633,879#1,53220
1940#703,442#1,89414
1939#783,188#1,71216
1938#743,357#2,6468
1937#693,421#2,08812
1936#693,334#1,46321
1935#633,579#2,12712
1934#633,683#1,86015
1933#533,840#1,64418
1932#534,256#1,28628
1931#484,613#1,25330
1930#425,470#1,60221
1929#524,767#1,84817
1928#574,810#1,61122
1927#545,084#1,79619
1926#505,015#2,30213
1925#485,323#2,01216
1924#495,381#2,47312
1923#505,095#3,8226
1922#524,976#3,2528
1921#485,157#2,63211
1920#524,979#2,33613
1919#544,515—
1918#584,447#2,54311
1917#633,870—
1916#673,477#3,1777
1915#713,063#2,8298
1914#872,010—
1913#1161,096#2,8215
1912#165636—
1911#179403—
1910#198333—
1909#197295—
1908#212255—
1907#196266—
1906#219203—
1905#229188—
1904#241166—
1903#228174—
1902#257148—
1901#247135—
1900#255162—
1899#227147—
1898#244146—
1897#263117—
1896#273109—
1895#275105—
1894#271104—
1893#27595—
1892#28887—
1891#31365—
1890#34854—
1889#27575—
1888#33352—
1887#33740—
1886#40628—
1885#36531—
1884#40924—
1883#49915—
1882#38921—
1881#37420—
1880#37519—
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Rita was already there! It came in at #375, and was given to 19 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1883, when fewer than 22 girls a year got the name.

Where Rita is popular in 1946

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #35 for girls · 6 births · 1 in 96 girlsAKMaine: #61 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 215 girlsMEVermont: #55 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 184 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #58 for girls · 25 births · 1 in 183 girlsNHWashington: #98 for girls · 50 births · 1 in 447 girlsWAIdaho: #78 for girls · 16 births · 1 in 321 girlsIDMontana: #42 for girls · 25 births · 1 in 194 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #42 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 171 girlsNDMinnesota: #56 for girls · 117 births · 1 in 253 girlsMNIllinois: #41 for girls · 358 births · 1 in 218 girlsILWisconsin: #46 for girls · 164 births · 1 in 200 girlsWIMichigan: #71 for girls · 203 births · 1 in 306 girlsMINew York: #67 for girls · 517 births · 1 in 256 girlsNYMassachusetts: #66 for girls · 180 births · 1 in 247 girlsMARhode Island: #72 for girls · 26 births · 1 in 270 girlsRIOregon: #85 for girls · 32 births · 1 in 399 girlsORNevada: fewer than 5 girls named Rita, so not publishedNVWyoming: #66 for girls · 8 births · 1 in 252 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #48 for girls · 30 births · 1 in 189 girlsSDIowa: #49 for girls · 115 births · 1 in 213 girlsIAIndiana: #36 for girls · 267 births · 1 in 141 girlsINOhio: #49 for girls · 342 births · 1 in 225 girlsOHPennsylvania: #59 for girls · 413 births · 1 in 240 girlsPANew Jersey: #74 for girls · 130 births · 1 in 319 girlsNJConnecticut: #71 for girls · 65 births · 1 in 271 girlsCTCalifornia: #75 for girls · 304 births · 1 in 327 girlsCAUtah: #163 for girls · 9 births · 1 in 807 girlsUTColorado: #52 for girls · 52 births · 1 in 245 girlsCONebraska: #57 for girls · 45 births · 1 in 258 girlsNEMissouri: #53 for girls · 147 births · 1 in 250 girlsMOKentucky: #47 for girls · 159 births · 1 in 204 girlsKYWest Virginia: #51 for girls · 87 births · 1 in 251 girlsWVVirginia: #72 for girls · 98 births · 1 in 330 girlsVAMaryland: #76 for girls · 67 births · 1 in 314 girlsMDDelaware: #76 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 272 girlsDEArizona: #43 for girls · 37 births · 1 in 194 girlsAZNew Mexico: #25 for girls · 61 births · 1 in 120 girlsNMKansas: #40 for girls · 85 births · 1 in 195 girlsKSArkansas: #64 for girls · 73 births · 1 in 289 girlsARTennessee: #69 for girls · 104 births · 1 in 347 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #64 for girls · 136 births · 1 in 343 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #155 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 716 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #63 for girls · 41 births · 1 in 260 girlsDCOklahoma: #55 for girls · 88 births · 1 in 247 girlsOKLouisiana: #56 for girls · 129 births · 1 in 235 girlsLAMississippi: #99 for girls · 69 births · 1 in 385 girlsMSAlabama: #105 for girls · 76 births · 1 in 466 girlsALGeorgia: #104 for girls · 87 births · 1 in 454 girlsGAHawaii: #164 for girls · 8 births · 1 in 597 girlsHITexas: #61 for girls · 284 births · 1 in 292 girlsTXFlorida: #98 for girls · 56 births · 1 in 435 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. New Mexico#25 · 1 in 120
  2. Alaska#35 · 1 in 96
  3. Indiana#36 · 1 in 141
  4. Kansas#40 · 1 in 195
  5. Illinois#41 · 1 in 218

Best ever in a state: #2 in New Hampshire, 1921.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
New Mexico#25611 in 120
Alaska#3561 in 96
Indiana#362671 in 141
Kansas#40851 in 195
Illinois#413581 in 218
Montana#42251 in 194
North Dakota#42361 in 171
Arizona#43371 in 194
Wisconsin#461641 in 200
Kentucky#471591 in 204
South Dakota#48301 in 189
Iowa#491151 in 213
Ohio#493421 in 225
West Virginia#51871 in 251
Colorado#52521 in 245
Missouri#531471 in 250
Oklahoma#55881 in 247
Vermont#55171 in 184
Louisiana#561291 in 235
Minnesota#561171 in 253
Nebraska#57451 in 258
New Hampshire#58251 in 183
Pennsylvania#594131 in 240
Maine#61391 in 215
Texas#612841 in 292
District of Columbia#63411 in 260
Arkansas#64731 in 289
North Carolina#641361 in 343
Massachusetts#661801 in 247
Wyoming#6681 in 252
New York#675171 in 256
Tennessee#691041 in 347
Connecticut#71651 in 271
Michigan#712031 in 306
Rhode Island#72261 in 270
Virginia#72981 in 330
New Jersey#741301 in 319
California#753041 in 327
Delaware#76101 in 272
Maryland#76671 in 314
Idaho#78161 in 321
Oregon#85321 in 399
Florida#98561 in 435
Washington#98501 in 447
Mississippi#99691 in 385
Georgia#104871 in 454
Alabama#105761 in 466
South Carolina#155361 in 716
Utah#16391 in 807
Hawaii#16481 in 597
Nevada———

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 Rita
Momentum · girls
Holding steady
  • 110 spots since 2024 (#1,395 → #1,285)
  • 54 spots since 2020 (#1,231 → #1,285)
  • 5 spots since 2015 (#1,280 → #1,285)
  • Biggest jump: 90 spots in 1884 (#499 → #409)
  • Biggest drop: 189 spots in 2003 (#916 → #1,105)
Rise & fade · girls
50 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1930 at #42 (5,470 births)
  • Births halved by 1966, 36 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 47 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 47 yrs · run 1914–1960
  • Top 1,000: 123 yrs · run 1880–2002
Share of babies · girls
1 in 206
  • Highest: 1 in 206 girls born in 1930 were named Rita (0.49%)
  • Latest: 1 in 9,237 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
Era · girls
The 1950s
  • 21.2% of all girls named Rita (60,265) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s325#275 (1889)#376
1890s1,029#227 (1899)#278
1900s1,992#196 (1907)#228
1910s23,850#54 (1919)#106
1920s50,587#48 (1925)#51
1930s38,741#42 (1930)#61
1940s49,853#52 (1943)#58
1950s60,265#56 (1950)#73
1960s32,883#96 (1960)#130
1970s10,547#203 (1970)#253
1980s6,150#284 (1981)#391
1990s3,221#545 (1990)#705
2000s2,169#846 (2001)#1,100
2010s1,828#1,182 (2017)#1,297
2020s1,012#1,231 (2020)#1,340

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.

Rita in 1946

girls
#56
5,533 births · 1 in 284 girls
boys
#2,030
13 births · 1 in 124,925 boys

Top girls' names in 1946

  1. #1Mary67,471
  2. #2Linda52,710
  3. #3Patricia46,297
  4. #4Barbara45,126
  5. #5Carol34,284
  6. #6Sandra31,692
  7. #7Nancy28,345
  8. #8Susan28,267
  9. #9Sharon27,824
  10. #10Judith22,310
  11. #56Rita5,533

Top boys' names in 1946

  1. #1James87,438
  2. #2Robert84,136
  3. #3John79,267
  4. #4William60,034
  5. #5Richard58,870
  6. #6David46,444
  7. #7Michael41,194
  8. #8Thomas38,877
  9. #9Charles38,215
  10. #10Ronald31,858
  11. #2,030Rita13
More about 1946

girls

1,571,305 girls got a published name in 1946; 1 in 284 of them was named Rita, which outranked 99.0% of the 5,686 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.5% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Rita
  1. #53Jo5,828
  2. #54Marie5,758
  3. #55Lois5,700
  4. #56Rita5,533
  5. #57Joanne5,506
  6. #58Ellen5,237
  7. #59Wanda5,235
Biggest movers since 1945
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,830Jacalyn#2,742 → #912
  2. ↑ 914Kimberly#1,621 → #707
  3. ↑ 615Suzette#1,032 → #417
  4. ↑ 538Randi#1,356 → #818
  5. ↑ 528Dayle#1,356 → #828
Fallers
  1. ↓ 335Oma#941 → #1,276
  2. ↓ 324Iola#824 → #1,148
  3. ↓ 324Artie#994 → #1,318
  4. ↓ 303Eartha#954 → #1,257
  5. ↓ 301Willia#830 → #1,131

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

boys

1,624,023 boys got a published name in 1946; 1 in 124,925 of them was named Rita, which outranked 49.5% of the 4,018 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 34.9% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Rita
  1. #1,949Waddell14
  2. #1,949Wells14
  3. #1,949Wilfrid14
  4. #2,030Rita13
  5. #2,030Adalberto13
  6. #2,030Americo13
  7. #2,030Ardis13
  8. #2,143Abron12
  9. #2,143Alcide12
  10. #2,143Aldon12

Tied with 112 names at #2,030; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1945
Risers
  1. ↑ 584Zachary#1,536 → #952
  2. ↑ 514Patric#1,494 → #980
  3. ↑ 385Kris#1,296 → #911
  4. ↑ 385Rich#1,296 → #911
  5. ↑ 380Furman#1,270 → #890
Fallers
  1. ↓ 469Layton#971 → #1,440
  2. ↓ 438Farris#971 → #1,409
  3. ↓ 394Delano#558 → #952
  4. ↓ 312Leopoldo#864 → #1,176
  5. ↓ 290Rosevelt#927 → #1,217

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

See the top 100 for 1946 →