Girls' name · since 1880
Marcella
Marcella has 65,614 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1922 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #503 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #948 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 65,614
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
65,614 babies have been named Marcella since 1880, making it today's #948 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Marcella has been recorded 65,614 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #948 nationally and more common than 95% 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.
- #503 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #948 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 65,614 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Marcella ranks #503 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #948 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 65,614 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #503 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #948 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 65,614
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Marcella's 65,614 recorded births place it above 99.3% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
49 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Illinois.
How Marcella compares
65,614 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
Marcella's all-time total is 175x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Marcella | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 65,614 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 1,537 | 21 | 19,840 |
Marcella's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Marcella's full recorded timeline at 1953, 38% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 62% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1881, with just 10 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1922 peak of 1,537 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Marcella popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1922)
- 1,537
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Marcella popularity over time - boys
222 total births recorded since 1911 (Marcella as boys' name)
Marcella by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (13,397 births, 20% of the file).
1920s was Marcella's strongest decade.
13,397 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 20% of all-time use.
Marcella births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 222
1880s
222 births
- 1890s 706
1890s
706 births
- 1900s 1,762
1900s
1,762 births
- 1910s
1910s
8,080 births
- 1920s
1920s
13,397 births
- 1930s
1930s
7,915 births
- 1940s
1940s
6,676 births
- 1950s
1950s
6,616 births
- 1960s
1960s
5,984 births
- 1970s 3,891
1970s
3,891 births
- 1980s 2,787
1980s
2,787 births
- 1990s 2,306
1990s
2,306 births
- 2000s 1,934
2000s
1,934 births
- 2010s 1,897
2010s
1,897 births
- 2020s 1,441
2020s
1,441 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 13,397 births (20% of all-time use).
How Marcella 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 Marcella's total volume
Marcella by state
Where Marcella concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Illinois | | 4,797 | 7.3% |
| #2 | California | | 4,712 | 7.2% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 4,640 | 7.1% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 4,371 | 6.7% |
| #5 | New York | | 3,427 | 5.2% |
| #6 | Wisconsin | | 3,121 | 4.8% |
| #7 | Minnesota | | 3,005 | 4.6% |
| #8 | Texas | | 2,529 | 3.9% |
4,797 of 65,614 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 49 reporting states.
Marcella appears in 49 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Marcella? ▼
Where does Marcella sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Marcella most popular? ▼
Where is Marcella most popular? ▼
How long has the name Marcella been used? ▼
What names are similar to Marcella? ▼
What to do with Marcella's data
- Marcella's decade-level peak was the 1920s (13,397 total births); usage has since declined to 1,441 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Illinois records the most Marcellas (4,797 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Illinois names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Marcella
Nearby Names Like Marcella
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Marcella
Compare Marcella side by side: Marcella vs Mary Marcella vs Margaret Marcella vs Maria
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Marcella
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Marcella: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1922)
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 Marcella 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.