Girls' name · since 1880
Harriet
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 90,306 babies named Harriet, peaking in 1921. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #403 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,071 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 90,306
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Harriet currently ranks #1071 among girls' names in America, with 90,306 babies recorded since 1880.
Social Security Administration records show Harriet recorded 90,306 times among girls since 1880, holding rank #1071 nationally today, ahead of 94% of girls, peaking in the 1920s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #403 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #1,071 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 90,306 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Harriet ranks #403 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,071 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 90,306 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #403 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,071 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 90,306
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Harriet's 90,306 recorded births place it above 99.44% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
50 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Harriet compares
90,306 Top 3% higher than 97% 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
Harriet's all-time total is 240x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Harriet | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 90,306 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 2,389 | 21 | 19,840 |
Harriet's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Harriet splits its recorded history at 1953: 14% of all births land in the more recent half, 86% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1993 (27 births) -- compare that against the 1921 peak of 2,389 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Harriet popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1921)
- 2,389
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Harriet popularity over time - boys
121 total births recorded since 1908 (Harriet as boys' name)
Harriet by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (20,873 births, 23% of the file).
1920s was Harriet's strongest decade.
20,873 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 23% of all-time use.
Harriet births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 3,369
1880s
3,369 births
- 1890s 4,171
1890s
4,171 births
- 1900s 4,600
1900s
4,600 births
- 1910s
1910s
15,598 births
- 1920s
1920s
20,873 births
- 1930s
1930s
13,692 births
- 1940s
1940s
12,925 births
- 1950s 7,129
1950s
7,129 births
- 1960s 2,943
1960s
2,943 births
- 1970s 851
1970s
851 births
- 1980s 453
1980s
453 births
- 1990s 345
1990s
345 births
- 2000s 449
2000s
449 births
- 2010s 1,570
2010s
1,570 births
- 2020s 1,338
2020s
1,338 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 20,873 births (23% of all-time use).
How Harriet 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 Harriet's total volume
Harriet by state
Where Harriet concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 12,937 | 14.3% |
| #2 | Pennsylvania | | 6,968 | 7.7% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 5,279 | 5.8% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 3,496 | 3.9% |
| #5 | New Jersey | | 3,268 | 3.6% |
| #6 | Minnesota | | 3,234 | 3.6% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 2,856 | 3.2% |
| #8 | Massachusetts | | 2,667 | 3.0% |
12,937 of 90,306 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.
Harriet appears in 50 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Harriet? ▼
Where does Harriet sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Harriet most popular? ▼
Where is Harriet most popular? ▼
How long has the name Harriet been used? ▼
What names are similar to Harriet? ▼
What to do with Harriet's data
- Harriet's decade-level peak was the 1920s (20,873 total births); usage has since declined to 1,338 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Harriets (12,937 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 Harriet
Nearby Names Like Harriet
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Harriet
Compare Harriet side by side: Harriet vs Harper Harriet vs Harmony Harriet vs Harley
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Harriet
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Harriet: 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 (~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 Harriet 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.