Girls' name · since 1955
Desire
Desire has 5,336 recorded births since 1955 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 2008 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #2,463 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,245 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 5,336
- born since 1955
- 1990s
- peak decade
Yes -- Desire is the #2245 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 5,336 recorded since 1955.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Desire has been recorded 5,336 times among girls since 1955, currently ranked #2245 nationally and more common than 87% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1990s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1955 to 2025.
- #2,463 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #2,245 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 5,336 born since 1955
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Desire ranks #2,463 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,245 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 5,336 born since 1955, peaking in the 1990s.
- #2,463 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,245 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 5,336
- born since 1955
- 1990s
- peak decade
Desire's 5,336 recorded births place it above 96.59% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
26 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Desire compares
5,336 Top 13% higher than 87% 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
Desire's all-time total is 14x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Desire | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 5,336 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 164 | 21 | 19,840 |
Desire's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Desire's full recorded timeline at 1991, 75% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 25% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1957, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2008 peak of 164 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Desire popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1955–2025
- Peak year (2008)
- 164
- Annual births at peak, across 71 years of records
Desire popularity over time - boys
132 total births recorded since 1915 (Desire as boys' name)
Desire by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (1,334 births, 25% of the file).
1990s was Desire's strongest decade.
1,334 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.
Desire births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1950s 36
1950s
36 births
- 1960s 114
1960s
114 births
- 1970s 273
1970s
273 births
- 1980s
1980s
794 births
- 1990s
1990s
1,334 births
- 2000s
2000s
1,332 births
- 2010s
2010s
914 births
- 2020s
2020s
539 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 1,334 births (25% of all-time use).
How Desire 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 Desire's total volume
Desire by state
Where Desire concentrates geographically, total births since 1955
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 705 | 13.2% |
| #2 | New York | | 487 | 9.1% |
| #3 | Texas | | 384 | 7.2% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 267 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Florida | | 260 | 4.9% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 190 | 3.6% |
| #7 | North Carolina | | 94 | 1.8% |
| #8 | Pennsylvania | | 81 | 1.5% |
705 of 5,336 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 26 reporting states.
Desire appears in 26 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Desire's data
- Desire's usage has stayed within range of its 1990s decade-level peak (1,334 total births) through the 2020s (539) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- California records the most Desires (705 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 Desire
Nearby Names Like Desire
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Desire
Compare Desire side by side: Desire vs Destiny Desire vs Desiree Desire vs Destinee
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Desire
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Desire: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2008)
Similar record span (~70 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, 1955–2025 (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 Desire 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.