US rank #12391 Girls' name Peak 1997 653 births

Shelsea — #12391 US girls' name

653 babies named Shelsea in U.S. Social Security records since 1971, with the highest year being 1997. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1970s111980s701990s2302000s2172010s1132020s12
#12391
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 30% of names given to girls today.

1990s
Peak decade

35% of everyone ever named Shelsea was born in this single decade.

1997
Single peak year

36 babies were named Shelsea in 1997 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Shelsea

The Social Security Administration has registered 653 babies named Shelsea between 1971 and 2024, spanning 54 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Shelsea currently holds the #12391 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1997, when 36 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Shelsea performed strongest in the 1990s, accumulating 230 births during that ten-year window. Across the 6 decades of recorded activity, Shelsea shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in California, which accounts for 101 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and New York. In total, SSA state-level files list Shelsea in 4 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Shelsea 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 653 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.

Shelsea at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

653

Since 1971

54 years of records

Peak year

1997

36 births that year

Strongest decade: 1990s

Current rank

#12,391

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1971

Recorded for 54 years

Last year on file: 2024

Shelsea popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1971

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1997)
36
Annual births at peak — across 54 years of records
010203040 20242014200820021996199019841971 5

Shelsea by decade

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

Peak: 1990s
Peak decade
1990s
230 births that decade — 35% of Shelsea's all-time total
1970s111980s701990s2302000s2172010s1132020s12

Shelsea by state

Where Shelsea concentrates geographically — total births since 1971

Geographically diffuse
Top 4 states by recorded births for the name Shelsea
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
101 15.5%
#2 Texas
27 4.1%
#3 New York
20 3.1%
#4 Florida
10 1.5%
California share of Shelsea's total US births 15.5%
Even split

101 of 653 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 4 reporting states.

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Shelsea?
653 babies have been named Shelsea since 1971. It currently ranks #12391 among girls. The peak year was 1997 with 36 births.
When was Shelsea most popular?
Shelsea was most popular in the 1990s decade with 230 total births. The single peak year was 1997.
Where is Shelsea most popular?
The top states for the name Shelsea are California (101 births), Texas (27 births), New York (20 births).
How long has the name Shelsea been used?
Shelsea has been recorded in Social Security data since 1971, spanning 54 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Shelsea?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Sheila, Sherry, Shelby, Shelly, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Shelsea

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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, 1971–2024 (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.