Girls' name · since 1880
Dorothea
Dorothea has 34,421 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1920 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #758 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,778 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 34,421
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
34,421 babies have been named Dorothea since 1880, making it today's #1778 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Dorothea has been recorded 34,421 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #1778 nationally and more common than 90% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #758 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #1,778 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 34,421 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Dorothea ranks #758 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,778 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 34,421 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #758 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,778 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 34,421
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Dorothea's 34,421 recorded births place it above 98.95% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
49 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Dorothea compares
34,421 Top 5% higher than 95% 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
Dorothea's all-time total is 92x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Dorothea | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 34,421 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 1,110 | 21 | 19,840 |
Dorothea's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Dorothea's full recorded timeline at 1953, 20% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 80% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 2005, with just 14 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1920 peak of 1,110 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Dorothea popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1920)
- 1,110
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Dorothea popularity over time - boys
6 total births recorded since 1956 (Dorothea as boys' name)
Dorothea by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (8,518 births, 25% of the file).
1920s was Dorothea's strongest decade.
8,518 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.
Dorothea births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 347
1880s
347 births
- 1890s 807
1890s
807 births
- 1900s 1,810
1900s
1,810 births
- 1910s
1910s
7,750 births
- 1920s
1920s
8,518 births
- 1930s
1930s
4,180 births
- 1940s 3,111
1940s
3,111 births
- 1950s 3,008
1950s
3,008 births
- 1960s 2,326
1960s
2,326 births
- 1970s 768
1970s
768 births
- 1980s 478
1980s
478 births
- 1990s 299
1990s
299 births
- 2000s 210
2000s
210 births
- 2010s 345
2010s
345 births
- 2020s 464
2020s
464 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 8,518 births (25% of all-time use).
How Dorothea 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 Dorothea's total volume
Dorothea by state
Where Dorothea concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 4,767 | 13.8% |
| #2 | Pennsylvania | | 3,215 | 9.3% |
| #3 | Massachusetts | | 2,080 | 6.0% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 1,762 | 5.1% |
| #5 | New Jersey | | 1,644 | 4.8% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 1,491 | 4.3% |
| #7 | California | | 1,201 | 3.5% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 1,149 | 3.3% |
4,767 of 34,421 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 49 reporting states.
Dorothea appears in 49 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Dorothea? ▼
Where does Dorothea sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Dorothea most popular? ▼
Where is Dorothea most popular? ▼
How long has the name Dorothea been used? ▼
What names are similar to Dorothea? ▼
What to do with Dorothea's data
- Dorothea's decade-level peak was the 1920s (8,518 total births); usage has since declined to 464 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Dorotheas (4,767 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Dorothea
Nearby Names Like Dorothea
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Dorothea
Compare Dorothea side by side: Dorothea vs Dorothy Dorothea vs Doris Dorothea vs Dora
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Dorothea
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Dorothea: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Dorothea 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.