Vanessa

#377 for girls in 2025, 813 births · Last seen for boys in 2014 at #12,108
Given to girls 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1988 · 7,516 births
Debut · girls
6 births
In top 100 · girls
33 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
261,622
since 1900

Vanessa over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201980peak #41, 1988girls
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#377813—
2024#334938—
2023#3041,014—
2022#3111,026—
2021#2531,226—
2020#2091,384—
2019#2711,224—
2018#2311,378—
2017#2031,521—
2016#1971,664—
2015#1871,729—
2014#1711,927#12,1085
2013#1522,095#9,6557
2012#1232,554—
2011#1202,620#10,8086
2010#1072,888#10,7666
2009#913,523—
2008#784,032#11,0376
2007#714,447#8,9158
2006#794,169#10,6626
2005#804,095#8,2998
2004#754,350#7,5369
2003#704,352#9,5816
2002#684,455#10,6675
2001#644,672#7,5368
2000#625,134#5,58812
1999#575,287#6,04210
1998#525,830#4,87313
1997#545,796#3,45520
1996#605,746#3,83017
1995#635,404#3,85416
1994#595,552#3,59618
1993#555,890#2,45530
1992#556,080#2,41230
1991#565,926#2,46928
1990#566,409#2,21432
1989#506,962#1,53753
1988#417,516#1,18972
1987#437,348#1,53446
1986#437,469#1,51144
1985#427,563#1,54442
1984#457,156#1,45843
1983#486,388#1,19058
1982#496,154#1,27853
1981#624,749#2,13824
1980#694,426#2,36721
1979#754,102#2,66917
1978#763,853#3,21512
1977#903,209#2,79115
1976#1062,463#3,47110
1975#1152,440#2,75114
1974#1222,353#3,5589
1973#1342,144#3,22310
1972#1332,280#3,3449
1971#1292,657#3,14610
1970#1382,576#4,7245
1969#1472,234#3,9356
1968#1811,797#4,1365
1967#1701,869#3,5596
1966#1971,643#2,9868
1965#2031,632#3,5376
1964#1832,056#3,0508
1963#1882,032—
1962#1752,244#3,3057
1961#1532,765#2,9009
1960#1542,711#3,0778
1959#1393,120#2,20014
1958#1482,744#2,64210
1957#1592,379#3,0248
1956#1452,617—
1955#1402,698#3,2017
1954#1422,643#2,7439
1953#1632,007—
1952#303695—
1951#656176—
1950#93791—
1949#1,07070—
1948#1,05769—
1947#1,17059—
1946#2,59714—
1945#1,94119—
1944#2,51113—
1943#3,04010—
1942#2,21416—
1941#2,66811—
1940#2,20314—
1939#3,4297—
1938#2,11315—
1937#1,91417—
1936#1,69120—
1935#1,26432—
1934——
1933#3,4067—
1932#3,0479—
1931#3,4977—
1930#2,84510—
1929#4,5705—
1928#4,1956—
1927#4,8055—
1926——
1925#3,3629—
1924——
1923#3,3509—
1922#4,4456—
1921#5,0995—
1920#4,3986—
1919#4,2516—
1918——
1917#4,0836—
1916#3,2588—
1915#2,68810—
1914——
1913#3,1875—
1912——
1911——
1910——
1909——
1908——
1907——
1906——
1905——
1904——
1903——
1902——
1901——
1900#1,7236—
1899——
1898——
1897——
1896——
1895——
1894——
1893——
1892——
1891——
1890——
1889——
1888——
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1880——
First appearance
1900

The first year at least five girls were named Vanessa! It came in at #1,723, and was given to 6 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1901–1914, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

Where Vanessa is popular in 1980

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #78 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 284 girlsAKMaine: #176 for girls · 7 births · 1 in 866 girlsMEVermont: #86 for girls · 8 births · 1 in 331 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #136 for girls · 8 births · 1 in 661 girlsNHWashington: #60 for girls · 86 births · 1 in 312 girlsWAIdaho: #142 for girls · 11 births · 1 in 627 girlsIDMontana: #84 for girls · 13 births · 1 in 360 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #100 for girls · 11 births · 1 in 429 girlsNDMinnesota: #126 for girls · 43 births · 1 in 678 girlsMNIllinois: #81 for girls · 204 births · 1 in 379 girlsILWisconsin: #138 for girls · 44 births · 1 in 716 girlsWIMichigan: #137 for girls · 88 births · 1 in 685 girlsMINew York: #40 for girls · 444 births · 1 in 225 girlsNYMassachusetts: #74 for girls · 89 births · 1 in 351 girlsMARhode Island: #68 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 267 girlsRIOregon: #80 for girls · 47 births · 1 in 368 girlsORNevada: #68 for girls · 16 births · 1 in 261 girlsNVWyoming: #71 for girls · 11 births · 1 in 292 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #202 for girls · 5 births · 1 in 935 girlsSDIowa: #141 for girls · 26 births · 1 in 772 girlsIAIndiana: #102 for girls · 71 births · 1 in 521 girlsINOhio: #113 for girls · 127 births · 1 in 577 girlsOHPennsylvania: #107 for girls · 130 births · 1 in 530 girlsPANew Jersey: #57 for girls · 132 births · 1 in 282 girlsNJConnecticut: #62 for girls · 54 births · 1 in 276 girlsCTCalifornia: #29 for girls · 1,009 births · 1 in 172 girlsCAUtah: #115 for girls · 31 births · 1 in 531 girlsUTColorado: #50 for girls · 79 births · 1 in 249 girlsCONebraska: #136 for girls · 16 births · 1 in 673 girlsNEMissouri: #137 for girls · 47 births · 1 in 711 girlsMOKentucky: #111 for girls · 48 births · 1 in 518 girlsKYWest Virginia: #147 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 704 girlsWVVirginia: #140 for girls · 43 births · 1 in 693 girlsVAMaryland: #127 for girls · 34 births · 1 in 594 girlsMDDelaware: fewer than 5 girls named Vanessa, so not publishedDEArizona: #35 for girls · 110 births · 1 in 175 girlsAZNew Mexico: #26 for girls · 74 births · 1 in 126 girlsNMKansas: #89 for girls · 38 births · 1 in 398 girlsKSArkansas: #112 for girls · 26 births · 1 in 520 girlsARTennessee: #125 for girls · 44 births · 1 in 646 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #217 for girls · 29 births · 1 in 1,147 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #134 for girls · 31 births · 1 in 577 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #74 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 296 girlsDCOklahoma: #81 for girls · 52 births · 1 in 371 girlsOKLouisiana: #168 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 787 girlsLAMississippi: #124 for girls · 31 births · 1 in 530 girlsMSAlabama: #130 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 590 girlsALGeorgia: #151 for girls · 47 births · 1 in 751 girlsGAHawaii: #70 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 296 girlsHITexas: #36 for girls · 601 births · 1 in 199 girlsTXFlorida: #44 for girls · 202 births · 1 in 256 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. New Mexico#26 · 1 in 126
  2. California#29 · 1 in 172
  3. Arizona#35 · 1 in 175
  4. Texas#36 · 1 in 199
  5. New York#40 · 1 in 225

Best ever in a state: #7 in New Mexico, 1985.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
New Mexico#26741 in 126
California#291,0091 in 172
Arizona#351101 in 175
Texas#366011 in 199
New York#404441 in 225
Florida#442021 in 256
Colorado#50791 in 249
New Jersey#571321 in 282
Washington#60861 in 312
Connecticut#62541 in 276
Nevada#68161 in 261
Rhode Island#68171 in 267
Hawaii#70171 in 296
Wyoming#71111 in 292
District of Columbia#74191 in 296
Massachusetts#74891 in 351
Alaska#78101 in 284
Oregon#80471 in 368
Illinois#812041 in 379
Oklahoma#81521 in 371
Montana#84131 in 360
Vermont#8681 in 331
Kansas#89381 in 398
North Dakota#100111 in 429
Indiana#102711 in 521
Pennsylvania#1071301 in 530
Kentucky#111481 in 518
Arkansas#112261 in 520
Ohio#1131271 in 577
Utah#115311 in 531
Mississippi#124311 in 530
Tennessee#125441 in 646
Minnesota#126431 in 678
Maryland#127341 in 594
Alabama#130391 in 590
South Carolina#134311 in 577
Nebraska#136161 in 673
New Hampshire#13681 in 661
Michigan#137881 in 685
Missouri#137471 in 711
Wisconsin#138441 in 716
Virginia#140431 in 693
Iowa#141261 in 772
Idaho#142111 in 627
West Virginia#147171 in 704
Georgia#151471 in 751
Louisiana#168391 in 787
Maine#17671 in 866
South Dakota#20251 in 935
North Carolina#217291 in 1,147
Delaware———

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 Vanessa
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 43 spots since 2024 (#334 → #377)
  • 168 spots since 2020 (#209 → #377)
  • 190 spots since 2015 (#187 → #377)
  • Biggest jump: 353 spots in 1952 (#656 → #303)
  • Biggest drop: 58 spots in 2022 (#253 → #311)
Rise & fade · girls
88 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1900
  • Peaked 1988 at #41 (7,516 births)
  • Births halved by 2009, 21 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 33 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 33 yrs · run 1977–2009
  • Top 1,000: 76 yrs · run 1950–2025
Share of babies · girls
1 in 228
  • Highest: 1 in 228 girls born in 1985 were named Vanessa (0.44%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,977 girls born in 2025 (0.05%)
  • Its best rank, #41 in 1988, was only 1 in 237 (0.42%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1980s
  • 25.1% of all girls named Vanessa (65,731) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1900s6#1,723 (1900)#1,723
1910s35#2,688 (1915)#3,493
1920s51#3,350 (1923)#4,278
1930s124#1,264 (1935)#2,578
1940s295#1,057 (1948)#2,047
1950s19,170#139 (1959)#293
1960s20,983#147 (1969)#175
1970s28,077#75 (1979)#112
1980s65,731#41 (1988)#49
1990s57,920#52 (1998)#57
2000s43,229#62 (2000)#74
2010s19,600#107 (2010)#176
2020s6,401#209 (2020)#298

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.

Vanessa in 1980

girls
#69
4,426 births · 1 in 375 girls
boys
#2,367
21 births · 1 in 84,950 boys

Top girls' names in 1980

  1. #1Jennifer58,374
  2. #2Amanda35,811
  3. #3Jessica33,924
  4. #4Melissa31,629
  5. #5Sarah25,757
  6. #6Heather19,973
  7. #7Nicole19,917
  8. #8Amy19,833
  9. #9Elizabeth19,529
  10. #10Michelle19,119
  11. #69Vanessa4,426

Top boys' names in 1980

  1. #1Michael68,683
  2. #2Christopher49,079
  3. #3Jason48,164
  4. #4David41,891
  5. #5James39,312
  6. #6Matthew37,834
  7. #7Joshua36,052
  8. #8John35,274
  9. #9Robert34,266
  10. #10Joseph30,185
  11. #2,367Vanessa21
More about 1980

girls

1,660,307 girls got a published name in 1980; 1 in 375 of them was named Vanessa, which outranked 99.4% of the 12,161 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.1% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Vanessa
  1. #66Jill4,558
  2. #67Dawn4,479
  3. #68Dana4,438
  4. #69Vanessa4,426
  5. #70Veronica4,378
  6. #71Lindsay4,353
  7. #72Tina4,260
Biggest movers since 1979
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,510Renada#2,218 → #708
  2. ↑ 1,173Tai#2,112 → #939
  3. ↑ 1,036Anya#1,592 → #556
  4. ↑ 601Chimere#1,503 → #902
  5. ↑ 517Brynn#1,442 → #925
Fallers
  1. ↓ 529Marlana#989 → #1,518
  2. ↓ 494Kizzy#647 → #1,141
  3. ↓ 369January#748 → #1,117
  4. ↓ 361Carisa#836 → #1,197
  5. ↓ 328Latonia#841 → #1,169

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

boys

1,783,951 boys got a published name in 1980; 1 in 84,950 of them was named Vanessa, which outranked 67.5% of the 7,293 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Vanessa
  1. #2,284Trevon22
  2. #2,284Victorio22
  3. #2,284Willaim22
  4. #2,367Vanessa21
  5. #2,367Algernon21
  6. #2,367Anh21
  7. #2,367Arien21
  8. #2,444Alexandros20
  9. #2,444Alicia20
  10. #2,444Alma20

Tied with 76 names at #2,367; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1979
Risers
  1. ↑ 381Gideon#1,370 → #989
  2. ↑ 296Bo#864 → #568
  3. ↑ 270Anson#1,137 → #867
  4. ↑ 266Dustan#1,255 → #989
  5. ↑ 255Dusty#614 → #359
Fallers
  1. ↓ 366Harris#991 → #1,357
  2. ↓ 362Tracey#842 → #1,204
  3. ↓ 331Jevon#780 → #1,111
  4. ↓ 321Kennith#937 → #1,258
  5. ↓ 267Levar#644 → #911

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

See the top 100 for 1980 →