Unisex name · since 1888
Elba
3,393 babies named Elba in U.S. Social Security records since 1888, with the highest year being 1956. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #3,325 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #10,953 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 3,393
- born since 1888
- 1960s
- peak decade
3,393 babies have been named Elba since 1888, making it today's #10953 unisex name.
Elba has 3,393 recorded births among girls since 1888, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #10953 as of the latest data, more common than 37% of girls, busiest in the 1960s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1888 to 2025.
- #3,325 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #10,953 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 3,393 born since 1888
- 1960s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Elba ranks #3,325 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #10,953 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 3,393 born since 1888, peaking in the 1960s.
- #3,325 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #10,953 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 3,393
- born since 1888
- 1960s
- peak decade
Elba's 3,393 recorded births place it above 95.4% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
9 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Elba compares
3,393 Top 17% higher than 83% 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
Elba's all-time total is 9x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Elba | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 3,393 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 82 | 21 | 19,840 |
Elba's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Elba's full recorded timeline at 1957, 59% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 41% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1888, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1956 peak of 82 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Elba popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1888–2025
- Peak year (1956)
- 82
- Annual births at peak, across 138 years of records
Elba popularity over time - boys
313 total births recorded since 1892 (Elba as boys' name)
Elba by decade
1960s is the heaviest window (533 births, 16% of the file).
1960s was Elba's strongest decade.
533 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 16% of all-time use.
Elba births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 11
1880s
11 births
- 1890s 74
1890s
74 births
- 1900s 91
1900s
91 births
- 1910s
1910s
217 births
- 1920s
1920s
233 births
- 1930s 190
1930s
190 births
- 1940s 207
1940s
207 births
- 1950s
1950s
516 births
- 1960s
1960s
533 births
- 1970s
1970s
421 births
- 1980s
1980s
334 births
- 1990s
1990s
264 births
- 2000s 157
2000s
157 births
- 2010s 88
2010s
88 births
- 2020s 57
2020s
57 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 533 births (16% of all-time use).
How Elba 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 Elba's total volume
Elba by state
Where Elba concentrates geographically, total births since 1888
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 922 | 27.2% |
| #2 | California | | 405 | 11.9% |
| #3 | New Jersey | | 99 | 2.9% |
| #4 | Texas | | 86 | 2.5% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 55 | 1.6% |
| #6 | Oklahoma | | 6 | 0.2% |
| #7 | Kentucky | | 5 | 0.1% |
| #8 | Massachusetts | | 5 | 0.1% |
922 of 3,393 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 9 reporting states.
Elba appears in 9 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Elba? ▼
Where does Elba sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Elba most popular? ▼
Where is Elba most popular? ▼
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What to do with Elba's data
- Elba's decade-level peak was the 1960s (533 total births); usage has since declined to 57 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Elbas (922 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 Elba
Nearby Names Like Elba
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Elba
Compare Elba side by side: Elba vs Elberta Elba vs Elbony Elba vs Elbert
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Elba
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Elba: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1956)
Similar record span (~137 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, 1888–2025 (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 Elba 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.