Girls' name · since 1915
Nerissa
1,977 babies named Nerissa in U.S. Social Security records since 1915, with the highest year being 1979. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #4,737 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #10,170 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,977
- born since 1915
- 1980s
- peak decade
Nerissa currently ranks #10170 among girls' names in America, with 1,977 babies recorded since 1915.
Social Security Administration records show Nerissa recorded 1,977 times among girls since 1915, holding rank #10170 nationally today, ahead of 41% of girls, peaking in the 1980s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1915 to 2025.
- #4,737 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #10,170 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 1,977 born since 1915
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nerissa ranks #4,737 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #10,170 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 1,977 born since 1915, peaking in the 1980s.
- #4,737 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #10,170 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,977
- born since 1915
- 1980s
- peak decade
Nerissa's 1,977 recorded births place it above 93.45% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
9 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Nerissa compares
1,977 Top 23% higher than 77% 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
Nerissa's all-time total is 5x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Nerissa | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,977 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 73 | 21 | 19,840 |
Nerissa's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Nerissa splits its recorded history at 1986: 44% of all births land in the more recent half, 56% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1948 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1979 peak of 73 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Nerissa popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1915–2025
- Peak year (1979)
- 73
- Annual births at peak, across 111 years of records
Nerissa by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (488 births, 25% of the file).
1980s was Nerissa's strongest decade.
488 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.
Nerissa births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 13
1910s
13 births
- 1940s 5
1940s
5 births
- 1950s 87
1950s
87 births
- 1960s
1960s
223 births
- 1970s
1970s
454 births
- 1980s
1980s
488 births
- 1990s
1990s
315 births
- 2000s
2000s
245 births
- 2010s 111
2010s
111 births
- 2020s 36
2020s
36 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 488 births (25% of all-time use).
How Nerissa 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 Nerissa's total volume
Nerissa by state
Where Nerissa concentrates geographically, total births since 1915
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 224 | 11.3% |
| #2 | New York | | 108 | 5.5% |
| #3 | Texas | | 53 | 2.7% |
| #4 | North Carolina | | 38 | 1.9% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 16 | 0.8% |
| #6 | Florida | | 10 | 0.5% |
| #7 | Illinois | | 7 | 0.4% |
| #8 | Pennsylvania | | 6 | 0.3% |
224 of 1,977 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 9 reporting states.
Nerissa appears in 9 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Nerissa? ▼
Where does Nerissa sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Nerissa most popular? ▼
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How long has the name Nerissa been used? ▼
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What to do with Nerissa's data
- Nerissa's decade-level peak was the 1980s (488 total births); usage has since declined to 36 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Nerissas (224 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Nerissa
Nearby Names Like Nerissa
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Nerissa
Compare Nerissa side by side: Nerissa vs Nereida Nerissa vs Neriah Nerissa vs Nereyda
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Nerissa
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Nerissa: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1979)
Similar record span (~110 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, 1915–2025 (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 Nerissa 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.