Girls' name · since 1880
Elizabeth
Elizabeth has 1,688,757 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1990 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #2 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #17 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,688,757
- born since 1880
- 1980s
- peak decade
Elizabeth currently ranks #17 among girls' names in America, with 1,688,757 babies recorded since 1880.
Elizabeth has 1,688,757 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #17 as of the latest data, more common than 99.9% of girls, busiest in the 1980s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #2 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #17 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 1,688,757 born since 1880
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Elizabeth ranks #2 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #17 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 1,688,757 born since 1880, peaking in the 1980s.
- #2 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #17 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,688,757
- born since 1880
- 1980s
- peak decade
Elizabeth's 1,688,757 recorded births place it above 99.99% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Elizabeth compares
1,688,757 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
Elizabeth's all-time total is 4,491x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Elizabeth | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,688,757 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 20,750 | 21 | 19,840 |
Elizabeth's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Elizabeth splits its recorded history at 1953: 64% of all births land in the more recent half, 36% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1881 (1,852 births) -- compare that against the 1990 peak of 20,750 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Elizabeth popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1990)
- 20,750
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Elizabeth popularity over time - boys
5,216 total births recorded since 1880 (Elizabeth as boys' name)
Elizabeth by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (198,972 births, 12% of the file).
1980s was Elizabeth's strongest decade.
198,972 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 12% of all-time use.
Elizabeth births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 25,006
1880s
25,006 births
- 1890s 33,879
1890s
33,879 births
- 1900s 41,708
1900s
41,708 births
- 1910s
1910s
116,811 births
- 1920s
1920s
139,672 births
- 1930s
1930s
96,480 births
- 1940s
1940s
116,551 births
- 1950s
1950s
165,656 births
- 1960s
1960s
168,920 births
- 1970s
1970s
142,845 births
- 1980s
1980s
198,972 births
- 1990s
1990s
172,693 births
- 2000s
2000s
133,568 births
- 2010s
2010s
94,103 births
- 2020s 41,893
2020s
41,893 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 198,972 births (12% of all-time use).
How Elizabeth 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 Elizabeth's total volume
Elizabeth by state
Where Elizabeth concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 142,808 | 8.5% |
| #2 | California | | 136,485 | 8.1% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 108,979 | 6.5% |
| #4 | Texas | | 100,615 | 6.0% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 75,412 | 4.5% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 71,100 | 4.2% |
| #7 | Massachusetts | | 56,541 | 3.3% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 54,684 | 3.2% |
142,808 of 1,688,757 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Elizabeth appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Elizabeth's data
- Elizabeth's decade-level peak was the 1980s (198,972 total births); usage has since declined to 41,893 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Elizabeths (142,808 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 Elizabeth
Nearby Names Like Elizabeth
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Elizabeth
Compare Elizabeth side by side: Elizabeth vs Eliana Elizabeth vs Elise Elizabeth vs Eliza
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Elizabeth
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Elizabeth: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1990)
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 Elizabeth 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.