Girls' name · since 1910
Donella
1,823 babies named Donella in U.S. Social Security records since 1910, with the highest year being 1952. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #5,004 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,028 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,823
- born since 1910
- 1970s
- peak decade
Yes -- Donella is the #15028 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 1,823 recorded since 1910.
Social Security Administration records show Donella recorded 1,823 times among girls since 1910, holding rank #15028 nationally today, ahead of 13% of girls, peaking in the 1970s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1910 to 2025.
- #5,004 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #15,028 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 1,823 born since 1910
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Donella ranks #5,004 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #15,028 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 1,823 born since 1910, peaking in the 1970s.
- #5,004 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,028 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,823
- born since 1910
- 1970s
- peak decade
Donella's 1,823 recorded births place it above 93.07% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
6 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by South Carolina.
How Donella compares
1,823 Top 24% higher than 76% 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
Donella's all-time total is 5x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Donella | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,823 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 51 | 21 | 19,840 |
Donella's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Donella's full recorded timeline at 1956, 55% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 45% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1910, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1952 peak of 51 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Donella popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1910–2025
- Peak year (1952)
- 51
- Annual births at peak, across 116 years of records
Donella by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (333 births, 18% of the file).
1970s was Donella's strongest decade.
333 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 18% of all-time use.
Donella births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 53
1910s
53 births
- 1920s
1920s
161 births
- 1930s
1930s
146 births
- 1940s
1940s
244 births
- 1950s
1950s
312 births
- 1960s
1960s
305 births
- 1970s
1970s
333 births
- 1980s
1980s
183 births
- 1990s 69
1990s
69 births
- 2000s 6
2000s
6 births
- 2010s 6
2010s
6 births
- 2020s 5
2020s
5 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 333 births (18% of all-time use).
How Donella 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 Donella's total volume
Donella by state
Where Donella concentrates geographically, total births since 1910
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | South Carolina | | 21 | 1.2% |
| #2 | California | | 17 | 0.9% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 13 | 0.7% |
| #4 | Michigan | | 7 | 0.4% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 5 | 0.3% |
| #6 | Texas | | 5 | 0.3% |
21 of 1,823 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 6 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Donella? ▼
Where does Donella sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Donella most popular? ▼
Where is Donella most popular? ▼
How long has the name Donella been used? ▼
What names are similar to Donella? ▼
What to do with Donella's data
- Donella's decade-level peak was the 1970s (333 total births); usage has since declined to 5 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- South Carolina records the most Donellas (21 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. South Carolina names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Donella
Nearby Names Like Donella
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Donella
Compare Donella side by side: Donella vs Donna Donella vs Dona Donella vs Donnie
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Donella
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Donella: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1952)
Similar record span (~115 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, 1910–2025 (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 Donella 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.