US rank #677 Girls' name Peak 1938 177,072 births

Loretta — #677 US girls' name

177,072 babies named Loretta in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1938. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s10361890s33821900s51511910s145701920s210711930s315371940s301201950s303941960s220701970s86401980s32791990s13802000s9302010s18032020s1709
#677
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 96% of names given to girls today.

1930s
Peak decade

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

1938
Single peak year

3,913 babies were named Loretta in 1938 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Loretta

The Social Security Administration has registered 177,072 babies named Loretta between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Loretta currently holds the #677 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1938, when 3,913 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Loretta performed strongest in the 1930s, accumulating 31,537 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Loretta shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 16,183 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Pennsylvania and Illinois. In total, SSA state-level files list Loretta in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Loretta 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 177,072 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.

Loretta at a glance

Top 1,000 girls' name

Total births

177,072

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1938

3,913 births that year

Strongest decade: 1930s

Current rank

#677

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Loretta popularity over time — girls

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

Top 1,000 girls' name
Peak year (1938)
3,913
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-1,00001,0002,0003,0004,0005,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 41

Loretta popularity over time — boys

502 total births recorded since 1911 (Loretta as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 502 births
0510152025 198119651958195019421935192819191911 7

Loretta by decade

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

Peak: 1930s
Peak decade
1930s
31,537 births that decade — 18% of Loretta's all-time total
1880s10361890s33821900s51511910s145701920s210711930s315371940s301201950s303941960s220701970s86401980s32791990s13802000s9302010s18032020s1709

Loretta by state

Where Loretta concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Loretta
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
16,183 9.1%
#2 Pennsylvania
13,442 7.6%
#3 Illinois
12,047 6.8%
#4 California
9,431 5.3%
#5 Ohio
9,014 5.1%
#6 Texas
6,977 3.9%
#7 Michigan
6,600 3.7%
#8 Missouri
5,349 3.0%
New York share of Loretta's total US births 9.1%
Even split

16,183 of 177,072 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Loretta appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Loretta?
177,072 babies have been named Loretta since 1880. It currently ranks #677 among girls. The peak year was 1938 with 3,913 births.
When was Loretta most popular?
Loretta was most popular in the 1930s decade with 31,537 total births. The single peak year was 1938.
Where is Loretta most popular?
The top states for the name Loretta are New York (16,183 births), Pennsylvania (13,442 births), Illinois (12,047 births).
How long has the name Loretta been used?
Loretta has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Loretta?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Lori, Lorraine, Lora, Lorena, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Loretta

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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.