Pamela

#2,239 for girls in 2025, 82 births · Last seen for boys in 2004 at #11,356
Given to girls 99.8% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1953 · 25,760 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
39 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
595,076
since 1895

Pamela over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201981peak #10, 1953girls
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#2,23982
2024#2,15088
2023#1,934102
2022#2,03495
2021#1,801112
2020#1,668123
2019#1,495146
2018#1,585136
2017#1,451155
2016#1,300184
2015#1,399167
2014#1,289185
2013#1,171205
2012#1,148215
2011#961266
2010#983258
2009#842331
2008#671455
2007#582516
2006#532568
2005#618457
2004#527540#11,3565
2003#446673
2002#517530
2001#483578
2000#457607
1999#421655#9,9125
1998#388714
1997#359770
1996#341814
1995#385687
1994#352748
1993#324806#6,8167
1992#301920#8,4355
1991#2591,085#6,5197
1990#2381,194#4,67311
1989#1991,331#4,27112
1988#1841,510#5,7517
1987#1531,784#3,95911
1986#1382,016#5,3327
1985#1162,468#3,80511
1984#1042,642#4,5528
1983#913,029#3,88410
1982#823,546#2,83116
1981#763,881#3,41212
1980#863,533#4,9407
1979#903,365#3,16813
1978#1092,690#4,1578
1977#1022,830#2,91014
1976#843,364#2,24520
1975#704,177#2,45017
1974#545,272#2,05021
1973#475,813#2,03620
1972#347,472#1,96621
1971#2810,149#1,27243
1970#2612,907#1,15951
1969#2413,355#98960
1968#2014,031#1,20640
1967#1715,368#1,04349
1966#1516,249#1,21638
1965#1217,467#1,27136
1964#1119,823#1,21940
1963#1420,593#94763
1962#1321,270#1,31135
1961#1521,691#1,13648
1960#1422,092#1,05853
1959#1224,714#1,26538
1958#1125,279#1,00158
1957#1225,015#1,10048
1956#1226,928#1,19341
1955#1226,690#1,21938
1954#1227,361#1,22737
1953#1025,760#1,33132
1952#1720,879#1,34731
1951#1618,570#1,43027
1950#1716,202#1,39527
1949#2115,132#1,54423
1948#2214,281#1,37828
1947#2812,398#1,39428
1946#349,367#1,40925
1945#426,169#1,85214
1944#446,204#1,40023
1943#544,839#1,52921
1942#1062,632#2,5239
1941#1551,468#2,8727
1940#251631
1939#347337
1938#369314
1937#399264
1936#434220
1935#458194
1934#535147
1933#629108
1932#69296
1931#66799
1930#71794
1929#666110
1928#703100
1927#91167
1926#84376
1925#86175
1924#1,09651
1923#1,07650
1922#1,26938
1921#1,40933
1920#1,58427
1919#1,74522
1918#2,02918
1917#1,99617
1916#2,49812
1915#1,57122
1914#1,89613
1913#1,46516
1912#1,29717
1911#1,7928
1910#2,3985
1909
1908
1907
1906#1,7276
1905
1904#1,8775
1903
1902
1901
1900
1899
1898#1,5026
1897
1896
1895#1,5925
1894
1893
1892
1891
1890
1889
1888
1887
1886
1885
1884
1883
1882
1881
1880
First appearance
1895

The first year at least five girls were named Pamela! It came in at #1,592, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1895–1897, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

See more about Pamela
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 89 spots since 2024 (#2,150#2,239)
  • 571 spots since 2020 (#1,668#2,239)
  • 840 spots since 2015 (#1,399#2,239)
  • Biggest jump: 235 spots in 1925 (#1,096#861)
  • Biggest drop: 187 spots in 2012 (#961#1,148)
Rise & fade · girls
58 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1895
  • Peaked 1953 at #10 (25,760 births)
  • Births halved by 1971, 18 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 10 for 1 yr
  • Top 10: 1 yr · 1953
  • Top 100: 39 yrs · run 1943–1976
  • Top 1,000: 87 yrs · run 1925–2011
Share of babies · girls
1 in 71
  • Highest: 1 in 71 girls born in 1954 were named Pamela (1.4%)
  • Latest: 1 in 19,601 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
  • Its best rank, #10 in 1953, was only 1 in 73 (1.4%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1950s
  • 39.9% of all girls named Pamela (237,398) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1890s11#1,502 (1898)#1,547
1900s11#1,727 (1906)#1,802
1910s150#1,297 (1912)#1,869
1920s627#666 (1929)#1,042
1930s1,873#347 (1939)#525
1940s73,121#21 (1949)#76
1950s237,398#10 (1953)#13
1960s181,939#11 (1964)#16
1970s58,039#26 (1970)#64
1980s25,740#76 (1981)#123
1990s8,393#238 (1990)#337
2000s5,255#446 (2003)#568
2010s1,917#961 (2011)#1,278
2020s602#1,668 (2020)#1,971

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.

Pamela in 1981

girls
#76
3,881 births · 1 in 430 girls
boys
#3,412
12 births · 1 in 149,265 boys

Top girls' names in 1981

  1. #1Jennifer57,046
  2. #2Jessica42,531
  3. #3Amanda34,372
  4. #4Sarah28,175
  5. #5Melissa28,005
  6. #6Amy20,345
  7. #7Nicole20,310
  8. #8Stephanie20,212
  9. #9Elizabeth20,168
  10. #10Heather17,946
  11. #76Pamela3,881

Top boys' names in 1981

  1. #1Michael68,750
  2. #2Christopher50,221
  3. #3Matthew43,330
  4. #4Jason41,927
  5. #5David40,629
  6. #6Joshua39,024
  7. #7James38,283
  8. #8John34,868
  9. #9Robert34,395
  10. #10Daniel30,985
  11. #3,412Pamela12
More about 1981

girls

1,668,060 girls got a published name in 1981; 1 in 430 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 99.4% of the 12,198 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.3% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #73Catherine4,057
  2. #74Sandra4,037
  3. #75Diana3,971
  4. #76Pamela3,881
  5. #77Tracy3,869
  6. #78Jill3,857
  7. #79Dawn3,839
Biggest movers since 1980
Risers
  1. 3,850Tashina#4,743#893
  2. 2,742Krystle#3,215#473
  3. 1,800Tierra#2,342#542
  4. 1,398Martine#2,189#791
  5. 999Nereida#1,981#982
Fallers
  1. 764Kylene#990#1,754
  2. 607Renada#708#1,315
  3. 560Ashanti#822#1,382
  4. 399Renata#336#735
  5. 395Tracee#959#1,354

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

boys

1,791,177 boys got a published name in 1981; 1 in 149,265 of them was named Pamela, which outranked 53.2% of the 7,289 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Pamela
  1. #3,221Wynn13
  2. #3,221Yale13
  3. #3,221Yohance13
  4. #3,412Pamela12
  5. #3,412Adriana12
  6. #3,412Adriano12
  7. #3,412Agustine12
  8. #3,601Aamir11
  9. #3,601Abdulrahman11
  10. #3,601Abrahan11

Tied with 188 names at #3,412; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1980
Risers
  1. 1,321Marchello#2,162#841
  2. 1,104Skylar#2,058#954
  3. 816Kellen#1,432#616
  4. 499Marcello#1,291#792
  5. 456Tyrel#1,089#633
Fallers
  1. 306Kenyatta#871#1,177
  2. 284Seneca#718#1,002
  3. 247Kimberly#989#1,236
  4. 216Chadd#927#1,143
  5. 214Levar#911#1,125

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

See the top 100 for 1981