US rank #7945 Girls' name Peak 1947 322,490 births

Phyllis — #7945 US girls' name

322,490 babies named Phyllis in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1947. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s1531890s6331900s20231910s178851920s618711930s738041940s761421950s577661960s257041970s38361980s14301990s6862000s2952010s1962020s66
#7945
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 55% of names given to girls today.

1940s
Peak decade

24% of everyone ever named Phyllis was born in this single decade.

1947
Single peak year

9,187 babies were named Phyllis in 1947 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Phyllis

The Social Security Administration has registered 322,490 babies named Phyllis between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Phyllis currently holds the #7945 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1947, when 9,187 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Phyllis performed strongest in the 1940s, accumulating 76,142 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Phyllis shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 29,687 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Pennsylvania and Illinois. In total, SSA state-level files list Phyllis in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Phyllis 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 322,490 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.

Phyllis at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

322,490

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1947

9,187 births that year

Strongest decade: 1940s

Current rank

#7,945

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Phyllis popularity over time — girls

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

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1947)
9,187
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-5,00005,00010,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 6

Phyllis popularity over time — boys

871 total births recorded since 1913 (Phyllis as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 871 births
010203040 197119601953194619391932192519161913 5

Phyllis by decade

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

Peak: 1940s
Peak decade
1940s
76,142 births that decade — 24% of Phyllis's all-time total
1880s1531890s6331900s20231910s178851920s618711930s738041940s761421950s577661960s257041970s38361980s14301990s6862000s2952010s1962020s66

Phyllis by state

Where Phyllis concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Phyllis
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
29,687 9.2%
#2 Pennsylvania
20,580 6.4%
#3 Illinois
20,195 6.3%
#4 Ohio
20,023 6.2%
#5 Michigan
15,134 4.7%
#6 Indiana
13,607 4.2%
#7 California
13,543 4.2%
#8 Massachusetts
12,639 3.9%
New York share of Phyllis's total US births 9.2%
Even split

29,687 of 322,490 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Phyllis appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Phyllis?
322,490 babies have been named Phyllis since 1880. It currently ranks #7945 among girls. The peak year was 1947 with 9,187 births.
When was Phyllis most popular?
Phyllis was most popular in the 1940s decade with 76,142 total births. The single peak year was 1947.
Where is Phyllis most popular?
The top states for the name Phyllis are New York (29,687 births), Pennsylvania (20,580 births), Illinois (20,195 births).
How long has the name Phyllis been used?
Phyllis has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Phyllis?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Phylis, Phyliss, Phylicia, Phylliss, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Phyllis

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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.