Girls' name · since 1940
Terra
Terra has 15,429 recorded births since 1940 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1980 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,263 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,416 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 15,429
- born since 1940
- 1970s
- peak decade
15,429 babies have been named Terra since 1940, making it today's #2416 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Terra has been recorded 15,429 times among girls since 1940, currently ranked #2416 nationally and more common than 86% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1970s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1940 to 2025.
- #1,263 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #2,416 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 15,429 born since 1940
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Terra ranks #1,263 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,416 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 15,429 born since 1940, peaking in the 1970s.
- #1,263 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,416 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 15,429
- born since 1940
- 1970s
- peak decade
Terra's 15,429 recorded births place it above 98.25% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
41 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Terra compares
15,429 Top 8% higher than 92% 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
Terra's all-time total is 41x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Terra | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 15,429 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 604 | 21 | 19,840 |
Terra's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Terra's SSA record in two at 1983 and the more recent half accounts for 52% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 48%, a genuinely balanced usage pattern. Its calmest year was 1940, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1980 peak of 604, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Terra popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1940–2025
- Peak year (1980)
- 604
- Annual births at peak, across 86 years of records
Terra popularity over time - boys
5 total births recorded since 1984 (Terra as boys' name)
Terra by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (4,766 births, 31% of the file).
1970s was Terra's strongest decade.
4,766 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 31% of all-time use.
Terra births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1940s 81
1940s
81 births
- 1950s 365
1950s
365 births
- 1960s 613
1960s
613 births
- 1970s
1970s
4,766 births
- 1980s
1980s
4,636 births
- 1990s
1990s
2,437 births
- 2000s 1,163
2000s
1,163 births
- 2010s 886
2010s
886 births
- 2020s 482
2020s
482 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 4,766 births (31% of all-time use).
How Terra 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 Terra's total volume
Terra by state
Where Terra concentrates geographically, total births since 1940
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 1,727 | 11.2% |
| #2 | Texas | | 943 | 6.1% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 855 | 5.5% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 670 | 4.3% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 604 | 3.9% |
| #6 | Florida | | 495 | 3.2% |
| #7 | Washington | | 460 | 3.0% |
| #8 | Pennsylvania | | 406 | 2.6% |
1,727 of 15,429 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 41 reporting states.
Terra appears in 41 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Terra? ▼
Where does Terra sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Terra most popular? ▼
Where is Terra most popular? ▼
How long has the name Terra been used? ▼
What names are similar to Terra? ▼
What to do with Terra's data
- Terra's decade-level peak was the 1970s (4,766 total births); usage has since declined to 482 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Terras (1,727 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 Terra
Nearby Names Like Terra
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Terra
Compare Terra side by side: Terra vs Teresa Terra vs Terri Terra vs Terry
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Terra
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Terra: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1980)
Similar record span (~85 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, 1940–2025 (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 Terra 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.