Girls' name · since 1882
Denise
Denise has 373,422 recorded births since 1882 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1961 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #99 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,674 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 373,422
- born since 1882
- 1960s
- peak decade
373,422 babies have been named Denise since 1882, making it today's #1674 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Denise has been recorded 373,422 times among girls since 1882, currently ranked #1674 nationally and more common than 90% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1960s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1882 to 2025.
- #99 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #1,674 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 373,422 born since 1882
- 1960s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Denise ranks #99 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,674 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 373,422 born since 1882, peaking in the 1960s.
- #99 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,674 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 373,422
- born since 1882
- 1960s
- peak decade
Denise's 373,422 recorded births place it above 99.86% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Denise compares
373,422 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Denise's all-time total is 993x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Denise | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 373,422 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 15,379 | 21 | 19,840 |
Denise's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Denise splits its recorded history at 1962: 55% of all births land in the more recent half, 45% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1882 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1961 peak of 15,379 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Denise popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1882–2025
- Peak year (1961)
- 15,379
- Annual births at peak, across 144 years of records
Denise popularity over time - boys
1,367 total births recorded since 1939 (Denise as boys' name)
Denise by decade
1960s is the heaviest window (128,824 births, 34% of the file).
1960s was Denise's strongest decade.
128,824 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 34% of all-time use.
Denise births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 12
1880s
12 births
- 1890s 6
1890s
6 births
- 1900s 58
1900s
58 births
- 1910s 203
1910s
203 births
- 1920s 633
1920s
633 births
- 1930s 1,646
1930s
1,646 births
- 1940s 10,105
1940s
10,105 births
- 1950s
1950s
123,783 births
- 1960s
1960s
128,824 births
- 1970s
1970s
55,868 births
- 1980s 25,113
1980s
25,113 births
- 1990s 13,747
1990s
13,747 births
- 2000s 9,062
2000s
9,062 births
- 2010s 3,319
2010s
3,319 births
- 2020s 1,043
2020s
1,043 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 128,824 births (34% of all-time use).
How Denise 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 Denise's total volume
Denise by state
Where Denise concentrates geographically, total births since 1882
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 46,947 | 12.6% |
| #2 | New York | | 43,794 | 11.7% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 28,392 | 7.6% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 23,427 | 6.3% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 21,154 | 5.7% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 20,449 | 5.5% |
| #7 | Texas | | 17,415 | 4.7% |
| #8 | New Jersey | | 16,253 | 4.4% |
46,947 of 373,422 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Denise appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Denise? ▼
Where does Denise sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Denise most popular? ▼
Where is Denise most popular? ▼
How long has the name Denise been used? ▼
What names are similar to Denise? ▼
What to do with Denise's data
- Denise's decade-level peak was the 1960s (128,824 total births); usage has since declined to 1,043 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Denises (46,947 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Denise
Nearby Names Like Denise
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Denise
Compare Denise side by side: Denise vs Dena Denise vs Denice Denise vs Denisse
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Denise
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Denise: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1961)
Similar record span (~143 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, 1882–2025 (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 Denise 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.