Total births
1,981
Girls' name · since 1976
Pooja
Pooja has 1,981 recorded births since 1976 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1997 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- 1,981
- total births
- 1976–2018
- years on record
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 48%
- born in that decade
Pooja is not among the current top-ranked girls names; 1,981 have been recorded since 1976.
Pooja has 1,981 recorded births among girls since 1976, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used girls names, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1976 to 2018.
- 1,981 total births
- 1976–2018 years on record
- 1990s peak decade
- 48% born in that decade
Data updated Jul 2026
The verdict
1,981 girls have been named Pooja since 1976, peaking in the 1990s, last recorded in 2018.
- 1,981
- total births
- 1976–2018
- years on record
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 48%
- born in that decade
1990s
Peak decade
48% of everyone ever named Pooja was born in this single decade.
1997
Single peak year
117 babies were named Pooja in 1997 - its busiest year on record.
Pooja's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Pooja's full recorded timeline at 1997, 46% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 54% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 2015, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1997 peak of 117 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Pooja at a glance
Last recorded 2018Peak year
1997
Current rank
Unranked
Active since
1976
Pooja popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1976–2018
- Peak year (1997)
- 117
- Annual births at peak, across 43 years of records
Pooja by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1990s was Pooja's strongest decade.
957 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 48% of all-time use.
Pooja births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 68
1970s
68 births
- 1980s 369
1980s
369 births
- 1990s
1990s
957 births
- 2000s
2000s
501 births
- 2010s 86
2010s
86 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 957 births (48% of all-time use).
How Pooja 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 Pooja's total volume
Pooja vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Pooja by state
Where Pooja concentrates geographically, total births since 1976
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New Jersey | | 296 | 14.9% |
| #2 | California | | 261 | 13.2% |
| #3 | New York | | 189 | 9.5% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 99 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Texas | | 53 | 2.7% |
| #6 | Michigan | | 46 | 2.3% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 36 | 1.8% |
| #8 | Florida | | 17 | 0.9% |
New Jersey share of Pooja's total US births 14.9%
Even split
296 of 1,981 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 12 reporting states.
Pooja appears in 12 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Pooja? ▼
1,981 babies have been named Pooja since 1976. It was last recorded in 2018. The peak year was 1997 with 117 births.
When was Pooja most popular? ▼
Pooja was most popular in the 1990s decade with 957 total births. The single peak year was 1997.
Where is Pooja most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Pooja are New Jersey (296 births), California (261 births), New York (189 births).
How long has the name Pooja been used? ▼
Pooja has been recorded in Social Security data since 1976, spanning 43 years of data through 2018.
What names are similar to Pooja? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Poonam, Poorvi, Poorna. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Pooja's data
- Pooja's decade-level peak was the 1990s (957 total births); usage has since declined to 86 in the 2010s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New Jersey records the most Poojas (296 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New Jersey names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Pooja
Nearby Names Like Pooja
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Pooja
Compare Pooja side by side: Pooja vs Poonam Pooja vs Poorvi Pooja vs Poorna
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Data Sources
Data as of July 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, 1976–2018 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Pooja: Baby Name Since 1976 - 1,981 Births, Peak 1997." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/pooja. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Pooja 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 July 2026.