Girls' name · since 1973
Shanessa
Shanessa has 131 recorded births since 1973 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1989 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #24,203 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 131
- born since 1973
- 1980s
- peak decade
Shanessa sits outside today's top ranks for girls, with 131 recorded since 1973.
Shanessa has 131 recorded births among girls since 1973, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used girls names, busiest in the 1980s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1973 to 2012.
- #24,203 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- 131 born since 1973
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Shanessa ranks #24,203 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 131 born since 1973, peaking in the 1980s.
- #24,203 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- 131
- born since 1973
- 1980s
- peak decade
Shanessa's 131 recorded births place it above 66.51% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Shanessa's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Shanessa splits its recorded history at 1991: 50% of all births land in the more recent half, 50% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1973 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1989 peak of 17 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Shanessa popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1973–2012
- Peak year (1989)
- 17
- Annual births at peak, across 40 years of records
Shanessa by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (45 births, 34% of the file).
1980s was Shanessa's strongest decade.
45 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 34% of all-time use.
Shanessa births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 15
1970s
15 births
- 1980s
1980s
45 births
- 1990s
1990s
37 births
- 2000s
2000s
20 births
- 2010s 14
2010s
14 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 45 births (34% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Shanessa's data
- Shanessa's decade-level peak was the 1980s (45 total births); usage has since declined to 14 in the 2010s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Shanessa
Nearby Names Like Shanessa
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Shanessa
Compare Shanessa side by side: Shanessa vs Sharon Shanessa vs Shannon Shanessa vs Shawna
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Shanessa: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1989)
Similar record span (~39 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, 1973–2012 (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 Shanessa 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.