Girls' name · since 1880
Teresa
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 416,044 babies named Teresa, peaking in 1961. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #87 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #908 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 416,044
- born since 1880
- 1960s
- peak decade
416,044 babies have been named Teresa since 1880, making it today's #908 girls' name.
Teresa has 416,044 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #908 as of the latest data, more common than 95% of girls, busiest in the 1960s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #87 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #908 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 416,044 born since 1880
- 1960s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Teresa ranks #87 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #908 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 416,044 born since 1880, peaking in the 1960s.
- #87 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #908 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 416,044
- born since 1880
- 1960s
- peak decade
Teresa's 416,044 recorded births place it above 99.87% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Teresa compares
416,044 Top 1% higher than 99% 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
Teresa's all-time total is 1,107x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Teresa | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 416,044 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 18,909 | 21 | 19,840 |
Teresa's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Teresa's full recorded timeline at 1953, 85% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 15% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1881, with just 46 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1961 peak of 18,909 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Teresa popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1961)
- 18,909
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Teresa popularity over time - boys
1,165 total births recorded since 1917 (Teresa as boys' name)
Teresa by decade
1960s is the heaviest window (151,793 births, 36% of the file).
1960s was Teresa's strongest decade.
151,793 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 36% of all-time use.
Teresa births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 769
1880s
769 births
- 1890s 1,587
1890s
1,587 births
- 1900s 1,889
1900s
1,889 births
- 1910s 5,194
1910s
5,194 births
- 1920s 9,227
1920s
9,227 births
- 1930s 7,648
1930s
7,648 births
- 1940s 19,329
1940s
19,329 births
- 1950s
1950s
114,283 births
- 1960s
1960s
151,793 births
- 1970s 56,037
1970s
56,037 births
- 1980s 23,411
1980s
23,411 births
- 1990s 11,952
1990s
11,952 births
- 2000s 6,755
2000s
6,755 births
- 2010s 4,215
2010s
4,215 births
- 2020s 1,955
2020s
1,955 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 151,793 births (36% of all-time use).
How Teresa 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 Teresa's total volume
Teresa by state
Where Teresa concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 41,356 | 9.9% |
| #2 | Texas | | 29,668 | 7.1% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 22,618 | 5.4% |
| #4 | New York | | 22,338 | 5.4% |
| #5 | North Carolina | | 18,775 | 4.5% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 16,575 | 4.0% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 15,626 | 3.8% |
| #8 | Tennessee | | 14,840 | 3.6% |
41,356 of 416,044 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Teresa appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Teresa? ▼
Where does Teresa sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Teresa most popular? ▼
Where is Teresa most popular? ▼
How long has the name Teresa been used? ▼
What names are similar to Teresa? ▼
What to do with Teresa's data
- Teresa's decade-level peak was the 1960s (151,793 total births); usage has since declined to 1,955 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Teresas (41,356 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 Teresa
Nearby Names Like Teresa
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Teresa
Compare Teresa side by side: Teresa vs Terri Teresa vs Terry Teresa vs Teri
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Teresa
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Teresa: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1961)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Teresa 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.