Iona — #2768 US girls' name
12,186 babies named Iona 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.
More common than 84% of names given to girls today.
26% of everyone ever named Iona was born in this single decade.
404 babies were named Iona in 1918 — its busiest year on record.
What the Data Says About Iona
The Social Security Administration has registered 12,186 babies named Iona between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Iona currently holds the #2768 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1918, when 404 babies received it in a single year.
Decade-level aggregation shows that Iona performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 3,151 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Iona shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Illinois, which accounts for 487 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Ohio and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Iona in 40 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.
No etymological entry is currently available for Iona 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 12,186 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.
Iona at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
Current rank
Active since
Iona popularity over time — girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880
- Peak year (1918)
- 404
- Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
Currently ranks #2768 among girls.
12,186 total births across 145 years of SSA records. Peaked in 1918 with 404 births in a single year.
Iona popularity over time — boys
10 total births recorded since 2008 (Iona as boys' name)
Unisex use remains the minority pattern
The boys' variant of Iona accounts for 0% of total recorded use across both genders.
Iona by decade
Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance
- Peak decade
- 1920s
- 3,151 births that decade — 26% of Iona's all-time total
Iona decade highlights
- Peak decade 3,151 births
- Runner-up 2,362 births
- Modern era share 2010s + 2020s
- Decades tracked with recorded births
1920s was Iona's strongest decade
3,151 babies received the name during that ten-year window — about 26% of all-time use.
Iona by state
Where Iona concentrates geographically — total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Illinois | | 487 | 4.0% |
| #2 | Ohio | | 487 | 4.0% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 441 | 3.6% |
| #4 | New York | | 388 | 3.2% |
| #5 | Texas | | 381 | 3.1% |
| #6 | Iowa | | 318 | 2.6% |
| #7 | Louisiana | | 315 | 2.6% |
| #8 | Missouri | | 308 | 2.5% |
487 of 12,186 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 40 reporting states.
Top 5 states
- Illinois 4.0% of nationwide
- Ohio 4.0% of nationwide
- Pennsylvania 3.6% of nationwide
- New York 3.2% of nationwide
- Texas 3.1% of nationwide
Recorded in 40 of 51 SSA jurisdictions
Illinois accounts for 4.0% of all recorded births nationwide — a relatively diffuse profile for this name.
Iona appears in 40 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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Keep exploring Iona
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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.