Girls' name · since 1880
Zelma
Zelma has 16,824 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1919 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,184 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #6,840 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 16,824
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Yes -- Zelma is the #6840 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 16,824 recorded since 1880.
Zelma has 16,824 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #6840 as of the latest data, more common than 60% of girls, busiest in the 1920s -- 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.
- #1,184 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #6,840 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 16,824 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Zelma ranks #1,184 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #6,840 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 16,824 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #1,184 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #6,840 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 16,824
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Zelma's 16,824 recorded births place it above 98.36% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
34 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Zelma compares
16,824 Top 7% higher than 93% 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
Zelma's all-time total is 45x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Zelma | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 16,824 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 488 | 21 | 19,840 |
Zelma's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Zelma splits its recorded history at 1949: 12% of all births land in the more recent half, 88% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1997 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1919 peak of 488 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Zelma popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1919)
- 488
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Zelma popularity over time - boys
112 total births recorded since 1888 (Zelma as boys' name)
Zelma by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (4,111 births, 24% of the file).
1920s was Zelma's strongest decade.
4,111 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 24% of all-time use.
Zelma births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 259
1880s
259 births
- 1890s 795
1890s
795 births
- 1900s
1900s
1,821 births
- 1910s
1910s
3,899 births
- 1920s
1920s
4,111 births
- 1930s
1930s
2,446 births
- 1940s 1,570
1940s
1,570 births
- 1950s 986
1950s
986 births
- 1960s 427
1960s
427 births
- 1970s 163
1970s
163 births
- 1980s 78
1980s
78 births
- 1990s 51
1990s
51 births
- 2000s 45
2000s
45 births
- 2010s 92
2010s
92 births
- 2020s 81
2020s
81 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 4,111 births (24% of all-time use).
How Zelma 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 Zelma's total volume
Zelma by state
Where Zelma concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 1,425 | 8.5% |
| #2 | Kentucky | | 913 | 5.4% |
| #3 | Oklahoma | | 737 | 4.4% |
| #4 | Tennessee | | 693 | 4.1% |
| #5 | Missouri | | 667 | 4.0% |
| #6 | Arkansas | | 653 | 3.9% |
| #7 | North Carolina | | 612 | 3.6% |
| #8 | Georgia | | 498 | 3.0% |
1,425 of 16,824 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 34 reporting states.
Zelma appears in 34 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Zelma? ▼
Where does Zelma sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Zelma most popular? ▼
Where is Zelma most popular? ▼
How long has the name Zelma been used? ▼
What names are similar to Zelma? ▼
What to do with Zelma's data
- Zelma's decade-level peak was the 1920s (4,111 total births); usage has since declined to 81 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Zelmas (1,425 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Zelma
Nearby Names Like Zelma
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Zelma
Compare Zelma side by side: Zelma vs Zelda Zelma vs Zella Zelma vs Zelie
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Zelma
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Zelma: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1919)
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 Zelma 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.