Girls' name · since 1904
Grethel
Grethel has 630 recorded births since 1904 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1921 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #10,212 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,012 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 630
- born since 1904
- 1910s
- peak decade
Yes -- Grethel is the #15012 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 630 recorded since 1904.
Grethel has 630 recorded births among girls since 1904, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #15012 as of the latest data, more common than 13% of girls, busiest in the 1910s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1904 to 2025.
- #10,212 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #15,012 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 630 born since 1904
- 1910s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Grethel ranks #10,212 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #15,012 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 630 born since 1904, peaking in the 1910s.
- #10,212 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,012 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 630
- born since 1904
- 1910s
- peak decade
Grethel's 630 recorded births place it above 85.88% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
The state file records this name in 5 jurisdictions, led by Texas.
How Grethel compares
630 Top 41% higher than 59% 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
Grethel's all-time total is 68% above the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Grethel | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 630 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 20 | 21 | 19,840 |
Grethel's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Grethel splits its recorded history at 1948: 45% of all births land in the more recent half, 55% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1904 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1921 peak of 20 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Grethel popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1904–2025
- Peak year (1921)
- 20
- Annual births at peak, across 122 years of records
Grethel by decade
1910s is the heaviest window (128 births, 20% of the file).
1910s was Grethel's strongest decade.
128 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 20% of all-time use.
Grethel births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1900s 27
1900s
27 births
- 1910s
1910s
128 births
- 1920s
1920s
110 births
- 1930s
1930s
52 births
- 1940s 39
1940s
39 births
- 1950s 11
1950s
11 births
- 1970s 10
1970s
10 births
- 1980s 5
1980s
5 births
- 1990s 29
1990s
29 births
- 2000s 45
2000s
45 births
- 2010s
2010s
112 births
- 2020s
2020s
62 births
What this shows Peak: 1910s at 128 births (20% of all-time use).
How Grethel 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 Grethel's total volume
Grethel by state
Where Grethel concentrates geographically, total births since 1904
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 24 | 3.8% |
| #2 | Kentucky | | 12 | 1.9% |
| #3 | California | | 6 | 1.0% |
| #4 | Arkansas | | 5 | 0.8% |
| #5 | West Virginia | | 5 | 0.8% |
24 of 630 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 5 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Grethel's data
- Grethel's usage has stayed within range of its 1910s decade-level peak (128 total births) through the 2020s (62) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- Texas records the most Grethels (24 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Grethel
Nearby Names Like Grethel
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Grethel
Compare Grethel side by side: Grethel vs Gretchen Grethel vs Greta Grethel vs Grecia
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Grethel
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Grethel: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1921)
Similar record span (~121 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, 1904–2025 (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 Grethel 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.