Shelly

#5,722 for girls in 2025, 21 births · Last seen for boys in 2007 at #12,367
Given to girls 97.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1966 · 3,856 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
5 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
84,420
since 1916

Shelly over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201964peak #89, 1966girls
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#5,72221
2024#4,56030
2023#5,96020
2022#4,79328
2021#4,50730
2020#5,00325
2019#4,65329
2018#4,66229
2017#4,22034
2016#4,08336
2015#3,47845
2014#3,22650
2013#3,12352
2012#3,16952
2011#3,84339
2010#2,97657
2009#2,39680
2008#2,66369
2007#2,54173#12,3675
2006#2,16589
2005#1,790109
2004#1,883100
2003#1,676114
2002#1,535123
2001#1,499125#10,5565
2000#1,301147
1999#1,206158
1998#1,129168
1997#1,130166
1996#904217#7,1367
1995#819240
1994#738281#7,7706
1993#697307#6,8167
1992#647348
1991#538434#7,2716
1990#564413#5,8238
1989#504466#4,01713
1988#429537#5,7517
1987#371629
1986#325744#5,3327
1985#281885#5,7856
1984#258949#4,2159
1983#2301,073#4,4998
1982#2261,137#3,28213
1981#2121,228#4,1539
1980#1861,451#3,43012
1979#1821,456#2,31021
1978#1751,501#1,87027
1977#1511,848#2,66516
1976#1451,861#1,93225
1975#1132,484#1,78727
1974#1072,797#1,61830
1973#1042,910#1,37637
1972#943,288#1,36438
1971#1033,637#1,56031
1970#1033,751#1,35138
1969#1023,676#1,32636
1968#983,595#1,16542
1967#943,648#1,47627
1966#893,856#1,40130
1965#983,850#1,12944
1964#1014,080#1,11447
1963#1173,790#1,40331
1962#1303,480#1,42330
1961#1452,994#1,26239
1960#1572,692#1,25239
1959#1881,883#1,55926
1958#2211,379#1,32134
1957#2441,210#1,27837
1956#291929#1,33533
1955#306786#1,72520
1954#306759#1,16941
1953#356571#1,33132
1952#355538#1,15241
1951#415407#1,15039
1950#440333#92655
1949#615181#1,18536
1948#863102#1,19436
1947#1,03174#1,27133
1946#99771#1,50922
1945#87374#1,07836
1944#1,07952#1,21230
1943#97566#1,17034
1942#1,03757#1,24431
1941#1,29435#1,25428
1940#1,21836#1,25129
1939#1,16039#1,32325
1938#1,31631#1,31026
1937#1,30331#1,21230
1936#1,74119#1,18231
1935#1,84518#1,29527
1934#1,91317#1,35725
1933#3,7536#1,82915
1932#1,95717#1,46523
1931#2,75010#1,84316
1930#4,0476#1,46325
1929#1,48024
1928#3,7437#1,16537
1927#2,69912#1,74820
1926#4,8515#1,43226
1925#1,62822
1924#3,3939#1,28732
1923#3,6418#1,35829
1922#4,4456#1,95217
1921#2,05916
1920#1,88518
1919#1,81118
1918#1,53923
1917#1,98615
1916#4,4175#1,69818
1915#1,87815
1914#1,60815
1913#1,49713
1912#1,7469
1911
1910
1909#1,0838
1908
1907#1,3455
1906
1905#1,2335
1904#8748
1903
1902#8628
1901#7798
1900#9688
1899#9286
1898#8857
1897#7878
1896
1895#9786
1894#8577
1893#7059
1892
1891#8416
1890#9945
1889#7228
1888
1887
1886#9595
1885
1884
1883
1882#7547
1881
1880
First appearance
1916

The first year at least five girls were named Shelly! It came in at #4,417, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1916–1921, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

See more about Shelly
Momentum · girls
Holding steady
  • 1,162 spots since 2024 (#4,560#5,722)
  • 719 spots since 2020 (#5,003#5,722)
  • 2,244 spots since 2015 (#3,478#5,722)
  • Biggest jump: 248 spots in 1949 (#863#615)
  • Biggest drop: 226 spots in 1997 (#904#1,130)
Rise & fade · girls
50 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1916
  • Peaked 1966 at #89 (3,856 births)
  • Births halved by 1976, 10 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 5 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 5 yrs · run 1965–1968
  • Top 1,000: 52 yrs · run 1948–1996
Share of babies · girls
1 in 439
  • Highest: 1 in 439 girls born in 1966 were named Shelly (0.23%)
  • Latest: 1 in 76,537 girls born in 2025 (0.00%)
Era · girls
The 1960s
  • 42.2% of all girls named Shelly (35,661) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1910s5#4,417 (1916)#4,417
1920s47#2,699 (1927)#3,795
1930s194#1,160 (1939)#2,179
1940s748#615 (1949)#998
1950s8,795#188 (1959)#312
1960s35,661#89 (1966)#113
1970s25,533#94 (1972)#128
1980s9,099#186 (1980)#302
1990s2,732#538 (1991)#837
2000s1,029#1,301 (2000)#1,945
2010s423#2,976 (2010)#3,743
2020s154#4,507 (2021)#5,091

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.

Shelly in 1964

girls
#101
4,080 births · 1 in 464 girls
boys
#1,114
47 births · 1 in 42,398 boys

Top girls' names in 1964

  1. #1Lisa54,270
  2. #2Mary40,985
  3. #3Susan31,515
  4. #4Karen30,243
  5. #5Patricia26,091
  6. #6Kimberly24,128
  7. #7Donna23,808
  8. #8Linda23,629
  9. #9Cynthia20,321
  10. #10Tammy20,043
  11. #101Shelly4,080

Top boys' names in 1964

  1. #1Michael82,617
  2. #2John82,508
  3. #3David75,043
  4. #4James73,026
  5. #5Robert69,980
  6. #6Mark45,261
  7. #7William44,224
  8. #8Richard40,098
  9. #9Thomas34,463
  10. #10Jeffrey30,728
  11. #1,114Shelly47
More about 1964

girls

1,894,855 girls got a published name in 1964; 1 in 464 of them was named Shelly, which outranked 98.7% of the 7,806 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 15.6% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Shelly
  1. #98Judith4,190
  2. #99Joan4,149
  3. #100Jean4,097
  4. #101Shelly4,080
  5. #102Betty4,070
  6. #103Shirley3,967
  7. #104Gloria3,966
Biggest movers since 1963
Risers
  1. 4,987Anjanette#5,891#904
  2. 2,403Deneen#2,619#216
  3. 2,162Denine#3,066#904
  4. 1,303Daneen#2,211#908
  5. 1,137Kecia#1,754#617
Fallers
  1. 341Leisha#993#1,334
  2. 320Cary#973#1,293
  3. 317Lisha#929#1,246
  4. 281Cecile#973#1,254
  5. 276Alexis#790#1,066

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

boys

1,992,698 boys got a published name in 1964; 1 in 42,398 of them was named Shelly, which outranked 75.8% of the 4,594 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 29.0% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Shelly
  1. #1,096Stafford48
  2. #1,096Tal48
  3. #1,096Wardell48
  4. #1,114Shelly47
  5. #1,114Alain47
  6. #1,114Arne47
  7. #1,114Arron47
  8. #1,126Antone46
  9. #1,126Aurelio46
  10. #1,126Boyce46

Tied with 11 names at #1,114; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1963
Risers
  1. 864Deron#1,548#684
  2. 653Cassius#1,513#860
  3. 392Kipp#1,215#823
  4. 363Fitzgerald#1,052#689
  5. 334Adrain#1,279#945
Fallers
  1. 286Farrell#886#1,172
  2. 283Tal#813#1,096
  3. 278Laura#921#1,199
  4. 272Pamela#947#1,219
  5. 270Huey#891#1,161

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

See the top 100 for 1964