Girls' name · since 1880
Besse
671 babies named Besse in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1889. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #9,793 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 671
- born since 1880
- 1880s
- peak decade
Besse sits outside today's top ranks for girls, with 671 recorded since 1880.
Besse has 671 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used girls names, busiest in the 1880s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 1926.
- #9,793 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- 671 born since 1880
- 1880s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Besse ranks #9,793 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 671 born since 1880, peaking in the 1880s.
- #9,793 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 671
- born since 1880
- 1880s
- peak decade
Besse's 671 recorded births place it above 86.44% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Besse's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Besse's SSA record in two at 1901 and the more recent half accounts for 34% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 66%, consistent with a name more common in the past than in recent years. Its calmest year was 1905, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1889 peak of 39, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Besse popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–1926
- Peak year (1889)
- 39
- Annual births at peak, across 47 years of records
Besse by decade
1880s is the heaviest window (214 births, 32% of the file).
1880s was Besse's strongest decade.
214 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 32% of all-time use.
Besse births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s
1880s
214 births
- 1890s
1890s
211 births
- 1900s
1900s
102 births
- 1910s 78
1910s
78 births
- 1920s 66
1920s
66 births
What this shows Peak: 1880s at 214 births (32% of all-time use).
How Besse compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Besse's total volume
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Besse's data
- Besse's decade-level peak was the 1880s (214 total births); usage has since declined to 66 in the 1920s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Besse
Nearby Names Like Besse
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Besse
Compare Besse side by side: Besse vs Bessie Besse vs Bess Besse vs Bessy
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Besse: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1889)
Similar record span (~46 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1880–1926 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Besse draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.