Thelma

#4,661 for girls in 2025, 29 births · Last seen for boys in 1969 at #4,404
Given to girls 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1910 · 2,976 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
42 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
225,460
since 1880

Thelma over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201909peak #25, 1910girls
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#4,66129—
2024#4,29433—
2023#5,39023—
2022#5,02826—
2021#4,32632—
2020#4,75727—
2019#5,61222—
2018#4,88927—
2017#5,04526—
2016#4,42332—
2015#4,98127—
2014#5,31025—
2013#6,46219—
2012#5,11427—
2011#8,19614—
2010#6,38220—
2009#4,26935—
2008#4,88230—
2007#5,09728—
2006#4,26534—
2005#3,50942—
2004#4,38731—
2003#3,53240—
2002#4,07131—
2001#2,60058—
2000#2,85450—
1999#2,81248—
1998#2,27962—
1997#2,93441—
1996#2,59148—
1995#1,80279—
1994#1,99970—
1993#1,94272—
1992#1,68889—
1991#1,70286—
1990#1,61792—
1989#1,50695—
1988#1,56484—
1987#1,42492—
1986#1,282105—
1985#1,318101—
1984#1,126122—
1983#1,127119—
1982#972152—
1981#964152—
1980#994148—
1979#905164—
1978#858171—
1977#774195—
1976#750193—
1975#736198—
1974#641238—
1973#682219—
1972#665225—
1971#606281—
1970#621274—
1969#554318#4,4045
1968#480400—
1967#481388—
1966#425475—
1965#379579—
1964#371655—
1963#353720#3,3187
1962#345752#4,0335
1961#339772#4,0655
1960#326835#3,3377
1959#305899—
1958#316847#3,5596
1957#291967—
1956#2541,078—
1955#2461,105#2,43511
1954#2281,241#2,9428
1953#2231,295#3,7985
1952#2091,358#3,3736
1951#1891,528—
1950#1871,458—
1949#1721,625#2,6069
1948#1631,763#2,44310
1947#1531,902#2,25112
1946#1501,794#2,6908
1945#1311,853#3,3385
1944#1311,997#1,89014
1943#1272,210#2,18212
1942#1212,257#2,04213
1941#1082,367#2,33310
1940#1012,461#2,17911
1939#882,696#1,35924
1938#862,866#1,74116
1937#783,062#1,57619
1936#743,196#1,16932
1935#763,190#1,16532
1934#653,646#1,21330
1933#573,636#1,33025
1932#514,272#1,32427
1931#534,440#1,11137
1930#455,250#1,21534
1929#415,476#1,23732
1928#405,978#1,25433
1927#386,303#1,43627
1926#366,585#1,19236
1925#356,823#1,09141
1924#337,316#1,05845
1923#317,379#1,35829
1922#317,254#1,43427
1921#307,839#1,29632
1920#317,814#1,27332
1919#317,558#1,04742
1918#327,740#1,01244
1917#327,245#1,29128
1916#297,290#1,20630
1915#306,762#1,24128
1914#265,496#1,22123
1913#264,595#91429
1912#264,183#1,02320
1911#273,166#98212
1910#252,976#72917
1909#262,612#84012
1908#262,526#1,0218
1907#282,339#73513
1906#312,114#70912
1905#361,945#78610
1904#371,757#8109
1903#471,479#7839
1902#521,309#1,0136
1901#571,090—
1900#731,094—
1899#78736—
1898#99605—
1897#117419#9426
1896#167260#1,1015
1895#205173—
1894#33370—
1893#41442—
1892#47133—
1891#51425—
1890#55822—
1889#51624—
1888#66315—
1887#9377—
1886#65712—
1885——
1884#8517—
1883#8176—
1882——
1881——
1880#8365—
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Thelma was already there! It came in at #836, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1882, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

Where Thelma is popular in 1909

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Thelma
Momentum · girls
Holding steady
  • 367 spots since 2024 (#4,294 → #4,661)
  • 96 spots since 2020 (#4,757 → #4,661)
  • 320 spots since 2015 (#4,981 → #4,661)
  • Biggest jump: 274 spots in 1888 (#937 → #663)
  • Biggest drop: 280 spots in 1887 (#657 → #937)
Rise & fade · girls
30 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1910 at #25 (2,976 births)
  • Births halved by 1950, 40 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 42 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 42 yrs · run 1898–1939
  • Top 1,000: 100 yrs · run 1886–1982
Share of babies · girls
1 in 132
  • Highest: 1 in 132 girls born in 1911 were named Thelma (0.76%)
  • Latest: 1 in 55,423 girls born in 2025 (0.00%)
  • Its best rank, #25 in 1910, was only 1 in 133 (0.75%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 30.5% of all girls named Thelma (68,767) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s76#516 (1889)#754
1890s2,385#78 (1899)#296
1900s18,265#26 (1909)#41
1910s57,011#25 (1910)#28
1920s68,767#30 (1921)#35
1930s36,254#45 (1930)#67
1940s20,229#101 (1940)#136
1950s11,776#187 (1950)#245
1960s5,894#326 (1960)#405
1970s2,158#606 (1971)#724
1980s1,170#964 (1981)#1,228
1990s687#1,617 (1990)#2,137
2000s379#2,600 (2001)#3,947
2010s239#4,423 (2016)#5,641
2020s170#4,294 (2024)#4,743

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.

Thelma in 1909

girls
#26
2,612 births · 1 in 133 girls
boys
#840
12 births · 1 in 13,666 boys

Top girls' names in 1909

  1. #1Mary19,259
  2. #2Helen9,250
  3. #3Margaret7,358
  4. #4Ruth6,509
  5. #5Dorothy6,253
  6. #6Anna5,804
  7. #7Elizabeth5,176
  8. #8Mildred5,054
  9. #9Marie4,301
  10. #10Alice4,170
  11. #26Thelma2,612

Top boys' names in 1909

  1. #1John9,590
  2. #2William7,913
  3. #3James7,595
  4. #4George4,688
  5. #5Robert4,563
  6. #6Joseph4,348
  7. #7Charles4,029
  8. #8Frank3,244
  9. #9Edward2,935
  10. #10Thomas2,468
  11. #840Thelma12
More about 1909

girls

347,228 girls got a published name in 1909; 1 in 133 of them was named Thelma, which outranked 99.0% of the 2,548 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 21.1% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Thelma
  1. #23Catherine2,897
  2. #24Hazel2,708
  3. #25Gertrude2,622
  4. #26Thelma2,612
  5. #27Ruby2,524
  6. #28Martha2,510
  7. #29Bertha2,444
Biggest movers since 1908
Risers
  1. ↑ 994Laverna#1,862 → #868
  2. ↑ 994Nevada#1,862 → #868
  3. ↑ 901Gayle#1,862 → #961
  4. ↑ 686Elba#1,676 → #990
  5. ↑ 612Gertha#1,547 → #935
Fallers
  1. ↓ 1,045Arnetta#912 → #1,957
  2. ↓ 987Launa#970 → #1,957
  3. ↓ 668Buna#939 → #1,607
  4. ↓ 540Arlena#829 → #1,369
  5. ↓ 540Elta#829 → #1,369

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

boys

163,996 boys got a published name in 1909; 1 in 13,666 of them was named Thelma, which outranked 50.0% of the 1,679 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 31.3% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Thelma
  1. #804Vernie13
  2. #804Whitney13
  3. #804Wright13
  4. #840Thelma12
  5. #840Alden12
  6. #840Antoine12
  7. #840Armando12
  8. #893Acie11
  9. #893Agnes11
  10. #893Agustin11

Tied with 52 names at #840; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1908
Risers
  1. ↑ 783Toney#1,373 → #590
  2. ↑ 720Cicero#1,373 → #653
  3. ↑ 538Alfonzo#1,217 → #679
  4. ↑ 533Bessie#1,373 → #840
  5. ↑ 533Ezell#1,373 → #840
Fallers
  1. ↓ 874Tracy#566 → #1,440
  2. ↓ 808Jonah#632 → #1,440
  3. ↓ 808Lew#632 → #1,440
  4. ↓ 783Blair#657 → #1,440
  5. ↓ 728Perley#712 → #1,440

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

See the top 100 for 1909 →