Thelma

#4,661 for girls in 2025, 29 births · Last seen for boys in 1969 at #4,404
Given to girls 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1910 · 2,976 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
42 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
225,460
since 1880

Thelma over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201928peak #25, 1910girls
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#4,66129
2024#4,29433
2023#5,39023
2022#5,02826
2021#4,32632
2020#4,75727
2019#5,61222
2018#4,88927
2017#5,04526
2016#4,42332
2015#4,98127
2014#5,31025
2013#6,46219
2012#5,11427
2011#8,19614
2010#6,38220
2009#4,26935
2008#4,88230
2007#5,09728
2006#4,26534
2005#3,50942
2004#4,38731
2003#3,53240
2002#4,07131
2001#2,60058
2000#2,85450
1999#2,81248
1998#2,27962
1997#2,93441
1996#2,59148
1995#1,80279
1994#1,99970
1993#1,94272
1992#1,68889
1991#1,70286
1990#1,61792
1989#1,50695
1988#1,56484
1987#1,42492
1986#1,282105
1985#1,318101
1984#1,126122
1983#1,127119
1982#972152
1981#964152
1980#994148
1979#905164
1978#858171
1977#774195
1976#750193
1975#736198
1974#641238
1973#682219
1972#665225
1971#606281
1970#621274
1969#554318#4,4045
1968#480400
1967#481388
1966#425475
1965#379579
1964#371655
1963#353720#3,3187
1962#345752#4,0335
1961#339772#4,0655
1960#326835#3,3377
1959#305899
1958#316847#3,5596
1957#291967
1956#2541,078
1955#2461,105#2,43511
1954#2281,241#2,9428
1953#2231,295#3,7985
1952#2091,358#3,3736
1951#1891,528
1950#1871,458
1949#1721,625#2,6069
1948#1631,763#2,44310
1947#1531,902#2,25112
1946#1501,794#2,6908
1945#1311,853#3,3385
1944#1311,997#1,89014
1943#1272,210#2,18212
1942#1212,257#2,04213
1941#1082,367#2,33310
1940#1012,461#2,17911
1939#882,696#1,35924
1938#862,866#1,74116
1937#783,062#1,57619
1936#743,196#1,16932
1935#763,190#1,16532
1934#653,646#1,21330
1933#573,636#1,33025
1932#514,272#1,32427
1931#534,440#1,11137
1930#455,250#1,21534
1929#415,476#1,23732
1928#405,978#1,25433
1927#386,303#1,43627
1926#366,585#1,19236
1925#356,823#1,09141
1924#337,316#1,05845
1923#317,379#1,35829
1922#317,254#1,43427
1921#307,839#1,29632
1920#317,814#1,27332
1919#317,558#1,04742
1918#327,740#1,01244
1917#327,245#1,29128
1916#297,290#1,20630
1915#306,762#1,24128
1914#265,496#1,22123
1913#264,595#91429
1912#264,183#1,02320
1911#273,166#98212
1910#252,976#72917
1909#262,612#84012
1908#262,526#1,0218
1907#282,339#73513
1906#312,114#70912
1905#361,945#78610
1904#371,757#8109
1903#471,479#7839
1902#521,309#1,0136
1901#571,090
1900#731,094
1899#78736
1898#99605
1897#117419#9426
1896#167260#1,1015
1895#205173
1894#33370
1893#41442
1892#47133
1891#51425
1890#55822
1889#51624
1888#66315
1887#9377
1886#65712
1885
1884#8517
1883#8176
1882
1881
1880#8365
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Thelma was already there! It came in at #836, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1882, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

See more about Thelma
Momentum · girls
Holding steady
  • 367 spots since 2024 (#4,294#4,661)
  • 96 spots since 2020 (#4,757#4,661)
  • 320 spots since 2015 (#4,981#4,661)
  • Biggest jump: 274 spots in 1888 (#937#663)
  • Biggest drop: 280 spots in 1887 (#657#937)
Rise & fade · girls
30 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1910 at #25 (2,976 births)
  • Births halved by 1950, 40 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 42 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 42 yrs · run 1898–1939
  • Top 1,000: 100 yrs · run 1886–1982
Share of babies · girls
1 in 132
  • Highest: 1 in 132 girls born in 1911 were named Thelma (0.76%)
  • Latest: 1 in 55,423 girls born in 2025 (0.00%)
  • Its best rank, #25 in 1910, was only 1 in 133 (0.75%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 30.5% of all girls named Thelma (68,767) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s76#516 (1889)#754
1890s2,385#78 (1899)#296
1900s18,265#26 (1909)#41
1910s57,011#25 (1910)#28
1920s68,767#30 (1921)#35
1930s36,254#45 (1930)#67
1940s20,229#101 (1940)#136
1950s11,776#187 (1950)#245
1960s5,894#326 (1960)#405
1970s2,158#606 (1971)#724
1980s1,170#964 (1981)#1,228
1990s687#1,617 (1990)#2,137
2000s379#2,600 (2001)#3,947
2010s239#4,423 (2016)#5,641
2020s170#4,294 (2024)#4,743

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.

Thelma in 1928

girls
#40
5,978 births · 1 in 193 girls
boys
#1,254
33 births · 1 in 33,564 boys

Top girls' names in 1928

  1. #1Mary66,871
  2. #2Betty36,083
  3. #3Dorothy33,733
  4. #4Helen22,937
  5. #5Margaret20,295
  6. #6Ruth17,859
  7. #7Doris16,575
  8. #8Barbara14,872
  9. #9Virginia14,500
  10. #10Shirley14,215
  11. #40Thelma5,978

Top boys' names in 1928

  1. #1Robert60,701
  2. #2John53,760
  3. #3James52,752
  4. #4William49,118
  5. #5Charles31,243
  6. #6Richard28,793
  7. #7Donald25,704
  8. #8George24,391
  9. #9Joseph22,322
  10. #10Edward18,492
  11. #1,254Thelma33
More about 1928

girls

1,153,318 girls got a published name in 1928; 1 in 193 of them was named Thelma, which outranked 99.3% of the 5,440 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 22.4% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Thelma
  1. #37Annie6,329
  2. #38Marilyn6,066
  3. #39Lorraine5,982
  4. #40Thelma5,978
  5. #41Gladys5,791
  6. #42Josephine5,671
  7. #43Nancy5,537
Biggest movers since 1927
Risers
  1. 2,165Jeanine#3,053#888
  2. 1,368Joline#2,256#888
  3. 1,101Lorelei#2,095#994
  4. 1,063Jeannine#1,384#321
  5. 859Romona#1,456#597
Fallers
  1. 860Valencia#924#1,784
  2. 547Kazuko#955#1,502
  3. 386Matilde#924#1,310
  4. 368Glendora#747#1,115
  5. 366Hilma#924#1,290

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

boys

1,107,613 boys got a published name in 1928; 1 in 33,564 of them was named Thelma, which outranked 73.4% of the 4,723 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.2% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Thelma
  1. #1,228Waldemar34
  2. #1,228Williard34
  3. #1,228Worth34
  4. #1,254Thelma33
  5. #1,254Apolonio33
  6. #1,254Bedford33
  7. #1,254Bernhard33
  8. #1,272Ballard32
  9. #1,272Chuck32
  10. #1,272Deward32

Tied with 17 names at #1,254; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1927
Risers
  1. 1,009Fidencio#1,959#950
  2. 766Hoover#1,128#362
  3. 700Reyes#1,692#992
  4. 441Arlen#1,227#786
  5. 392Arland#1,372#980
Fallers
  1. 2,975Shoji#722#3,697
  2. 529Alvan#951#1,480
  3. 418Watson#964#1,382
  4. 412Judge#911#1,323
  5. 363Donato#990#1,353

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

See the top 100 for 1928