Girls' name · since 1880
Helen
1,024,202 babies named Helen 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.
- #12 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #461 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,024,202
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
1,024,202 babies have been named Helen since 1880, making it today's #461 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Helen has been recorded 1,024,202 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #461 nationally and more common than 97% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #12 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #461 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 1,024,202 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Helen ranks #12 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #461 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 1,024,202 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #12 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #461 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,024,202
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Helen's 1,024,202 recorded births place it above 99.98% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Pennsylvania.
How Helen compares
1,024,202 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
Helen's all-time total is 2,724x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Helen | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,024,202 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 36,148 | 21 | 19,840 |
Helen's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Helen splits its recorded history at 1953: 11% of all births land in the more recent half, 89% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1881 (612 births) -- compare that against the 1918 peak of 36,148 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Helen popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1918)
- 36,148
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Helen popularity over time - boys
3,105 total births recorded since 1881 (Helen as boys' name)
Helen by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (290,404 births, 28% of the file).
1920s was Helen's strongest decade.
290,404 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 28% of all-time use.
Helen births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 11,496
1880s
11,496 births
- 1890s 37,802
1890s
37,802 births
- 1900s 69,428
1900s
69,428 births
- 1910s
1910s
248,154 births
- 1920s
1920s
290,404 births
- 1930s
1930s
140,426 births
- 1940s 90,742
1940s
90,742 births
- 1950s 57,580
1950s
57,580 births
- 1960s 29,099
1960s
29,099 births
- 1970s 11,476
1970s
11,476 births
- 1980s 8,413
1980s
8,413 births
- 1990s 8,403
1990s
8,403 births
- 2000s 8,847
2000s
8,847 births
- 2010s 7,585
2010s
7,585 births
- 2020s 4,347
2020s
4,347 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 290,404 births (28% of all-time use).
How Helen 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 Helen's total volume
Helen by state
Where Helen concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Pennsylvania | | 102,510 | 10.0% |
| #2 | New York | | 93,572 | 9.1% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 52,520 | 5.1% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 51,109 | 5.0% |
| #5 | California | | 34,708 | 3.4% |
| #6 | Texas | | 34,368 | 3.4% |
| #7 | New Jersey | | 34,147 | 3.3% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 33,584 | 3.3% |
102,510 of 1,024,202 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Helen appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Helen? ▼
Where does Helen sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Helen most popular? ▼
Where is Helen most popular? ▼
How long has the name Helen been used? ▼
What names are similar to Helen? ▼
What to do with Helen's data
- Helen's decade-level peak was the 1920s (290,404 total births); usage has since declined to 4,347 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Pennsylvania records the most Helens (102,510 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Pennsylvania names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Helen
Nearby Names Like Helen
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Helen
Compare Helen side by side: Helen vs Helena Helen vs Helene Helen vs Hellen
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Helen
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Helen: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1918)
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 Helen 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.