Elsie

#123 for girls in 2025, 2,236 births · Last seen for boys in 1959 at #3,988
Given to girls 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1896 · 1,878 births
Debut · girls
301 births
In top 100 · girls
54 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
190,072
since 1880

Elsie over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201917peak #31, 1896girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#1232,236
2024#1551,910
2023#1631,757
2022#1891,563
2021#2221,345
2020#2331,270
2019#2491,288
2018#2781,192
2017#2981,092
2016#340981
2015#386848
2014#3341,005
2013#365857
2012#393788
2011#479621
2010#637462
2009#680428
2008#739405
2007#882317
2006#864308
2005#917271
2004#1,086211
2003#1,180182
2002#1,165176
2001#1,285152
2000#1,301147
1999#1,258147
1998#1,213151
1997#1,273138
1996#1,328128
1995#1,060169
1994#1,184149
1993#1,202144
1992#1,156152
1991#1,257134
1990#1,186144
1989#1,234129
1988#1,164131
1987#1,192122
1986#1,203116
1985#1,103131
1984#1,205108
1983#1,230103
1982#1,277100
1981#1,172113
1980#1,125121
1979#1,074128
1978#1,26597
1977#1,157108
1976#1,078113
1975#917141
1974#889144
1973#917134
1972#944130
1971#919141
1970#848159
1969#800166
1968#776166
1967#690199
1966#635228
1965#611253
1964#648248
1963#567301
1962#556309
1961#524346
1960#518348
1959#483401#3,9885
1958#464416
1957#416499
1956#417477
1955#385526
1954#373549
1953#342593
1952#344575#3,7345
1951#314631#3,3646
1950#294689
1949#286729#3,6905
1948#249903
1947#244953
1946#2221,041#2,5349
1945#202977
1944#1911,095#2,4679
1943#1811,245#2,18212
1942#1661,399#2,38610
1941#1571,415#2,6568
1940#1511,466#2,4789
1939#1401,703#2,28810
1938#1371,775#1,68917
1937#1251,938#1,91314
1936#1231,874#2,06212
1935#1132,075#2,02913
1934#1072,270#1,60819
1933#992,376#1,28127
1932#972,554#1,92215
1931#862,807#1,53821
1930#882,973#1,64420
1929#783,230#1,48024
1928#733,470#1,90217
1927#723,803#1,19836
1926#693,910#1,72020
1925#634,146#1,22534
1924#614,499#1,77620
1923#614,550#2,02016
1922#594,618#2,14315
1921#554,879#1,47526
1920#514,993#1,64222
1919#474,995#1,62421
1918#495,194#1,37327
1917#504,939#1,52822
1916#485,027#1,45923
1915#414,967#1,60019
1914#463,683#1,10127
1913#403,209#1,31116
1912#422,895#1,52711
1911#412,224#85615
1910#442,141#75516
1909#392,064#84012
1908#411,983#1,1137
1907#431,872#86610
1906#401,771#75211
1905#401,811
1904#391,719#68612
1903#381,720#65612
1902#381,720#58314
1901#351,747#68310
1900#382,045#64915
1899#331,706#66110
1898#331,919#1,1215
1897#311,763#8527
1896#311,878#9826
1895#321,795#7389
1894#331,716#7309
1893#351,586#65010
1892#371,489#7489
1891#381,303#7008
1890#451,220#7398
1889#411,199#9745
1888#471,112#8157
1887#49833
1886#58698#8456
1885#55685#9365
1884#63549
1883#65479
1882#65448
1881#70344
1880#78301#8096
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Elsie was already there! It came in at #78, and was given to 301 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1971–1991, when fewer than 150 girls a year got the name.

See more about Elsie
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 32 spots since 2024 (#155#123)
  • 110 spots since 2020 (#233#123)
  • 263 spots since 2015 (#386#123)
  • Biggest jump: 169 spots in 2005 (#1,086#917)
  • Biggest drop: 161 spots in 1976 (#917#1,078)
Rise & fade · girls
16 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1896 at #31 (1,878 births)
  • Births halved by 1948, 52 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 54 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 54 yrs · run 1880–1933
  • Top 1,000: 117 yrs · run 1880–1975
Share of babies · girls
1 in 127
  • Highest: 1 in 127 girls born in 1896 were named Elsie (0.79%)
  • Latest: 1 in 719 girls born in 2025 (0.14%)
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 22.1% of all girls named Elsie (42,098) were born in this decade
  • Comeback: #31 (1896) → #1,328 (1996) → #123 (2025)
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s6,648#41 (1889)#59
1890s16,375#31 (1896)#35
1900s18,452#35 (1901)#39
1910s39,274#40 (1913)#45
1920s42,098#51 (1920)#64
1930s22,345#86 (1931)#112
1940s11,223#151 (1940)#205
1950s5,356#294 (1950)#383
1960s2,564#518 (1960)#633
1970s1,295#848 (1970)#1,001
1980s1,174#1,103 (1985)#1,191
1990s1,456#1,060 (1995)#1,212
2000s2,597#680 (2009)#1,010
2010s9,134#249 (2019)#376
2020s10,081#123 (2025)#181

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Elsie in 1917

girls
#50
4,939 births · 1 in 219 girls
boys
#1,528
22 births · 1 in 42,067 boys

Top girls' names in 1917

  1. #1Mary64,280
  2. #2Helen34,251
  3. #3Dorothy28,852
  4. #4Margaret25,560
  5. #5Ruth23,568
  6. #6Mildred16,256
  7. #7Anna15,160
  8. #8Elizabeth15,131
  9. #9Frances14,363
  10. #10Virginia14,261
  11. #50Elsie4,939

Top boys' names in 1917

  1. #1John51,852
  2. #2William42,422
  3. #3James37,337
  4. #4Robert35,220
  5. #5Joseph24,761
  6. #6George24,196
  7. #7Charles24,143
  8. #8Edward17,501
  9. #9Frank15,768
  10. #10Thomas12,611
  11. #1,528Elsie22
More about 1917

girls

1,081,267 girls got a published name in 1917; 1 in 219 of them was named Elsie, which outranked 99.1% of the 5,310 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.3% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Elsie
  1. #47Julia5,078
  2. #48Agnes5,066
  3. #49Katherine4,956
  4. #50Elsie4,939
  5. #51Bertha4,881
  6. #52Sarah4,766
  7. #53Anne4,603
Biggest movers since 1916
Risers
  1. 549Georgene#1,445#896
  2. 380Ottie#1,332#952
  3. 365Louis#1,298#933
  4. 334Valentine#1,298#964
  5. 322Harold#1,210#888
Fallers
  1. 401Ceola#840#1,241
  2. 373Floretta#964#1,337
  3. 344Buelah#993#1,337
  4. 326Glennie#915#1,241
  5. 290Maye#915#1,205

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

925,482 boys got a published name in 1917; 1 in 42,067 of them was named Elsie, which outranked 66.8% of the 4,602 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 30.9% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Elsie
  1. #1,479Waverly23
  2. #1,479Yale23
  3. #1,479Zeb23
  4. #1,528Elsie22
  5. #1,528Aime22
  6. #1,528Alston22
  7. #1,528Ancel22
  8. #1,587Albino21
  9. #1,587Almond21
  10. #1,587Alwin21

Tied with 58 names at #1,528; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1916
Risers
  1. 520Nicolas#1,304#784
  2. 469Hezekiah#1,415#946
  3. 433Hilliard#1,415#982
  4. 404Rayford#1,304#900
  5. 338Minoru#1,335#997
Fallers
  1. 1,738Tatsuo#824#2,562
  2. 709Berlin#984#1,693
  3. 556Prentice#972#1,528
  4. 473Manning#964#1,437
  5. 457Lovell#939#1,396

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1917