US rank #131 Girls' name Peak 1918 268,912 births

Esther — #131 US girls' name

268,912 babies named Esther in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1918. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s34761890s147371900s200261910s492121920s492301930s257911940s176391950s157661960s101111970s72961980s88171990s94132000s114762010s159282020s9994
#131
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 99.3% of names given to girls today.

1920s
Peak decade

18% of everyone ever named Esther was born in this single decade.

1918
Single peak year

6,574 babies were named Esther in 1918 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Esther

The Social Security Administration has registered 268,912 babies named Esther between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Esther currently holds the #131 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1918, when 6,574 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Esther performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 49,230 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Esther shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 30,593 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Pennsylvania and California. In total, SSA state-level files list Esther in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Esther in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 268,912 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Esther at a glance

Top 1,000 girls' name

Total births

268,912

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1918

6,574 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#131

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Esther popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 1,000 girls' name
Peak year (1918)
6,574
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-2,00002,0004,0006,0008,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 198

Esther popularity over time — boys

967 total births recorded since 1890 (Esther as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 967 births
010203040 202019841959194319321921191018971890 6

Esther by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
49,230 births that decade — 18% of Esther's all-time total
1880s34761890s147371900s200261910s492121920s492301930s257911940s176391950s157661960s101111970s72961980s88171990s94132000s114762010s159282020s9994

Esther by state

Where Esther concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Esther
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
30,593 11.4%
#2 Pennsylvania
19,128 7.1%
#3 California
18,919 7.0%
#4 Texas
14,356 5.3%
#5 Ohio
11,696 4.3%
#6 Illinois
10,644 4.0%
#7 Michigan
8,214 3.1%
#8 New Jersey
7,792 2.9%
New York share of Esther's total US births 11.4%
Even split

30,593 of 268,912 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Esther appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Esther?
268,912 babies have been named Esther since 1880. It currently ranks #131 among girls. The peak year was 1918 with 6,574 births.
When was Esther most popular?
Esther was most popular in the 1920s decade with 49,230 total births. The single peak year was 1918.
Where is Esther most popular?
The top states for the name Esther are New York (30,593 births), Pennsylvania (19,128 births), California (18,919 births).
How long has the name Esther been used?
Esther has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Esther?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Estelle, Estella, Estrella, Ester, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Esther

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.