Velma

#5,722 for girls in 2025, 21 births · Last seen for boys in 1955 at #2,558
Given to girls 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1912 · 1,403 births
Debut · girls
16 births
In top 100 · girls
14 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
86,752
since 1880

Velma over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201917peak #88, 1912girls
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#7,96713
2023#5,54922
2022#5,17225
2021#7,25015
2020#7,21215
2019#7,71614
2018#5,78521
2017#11,6158
2016#12,8767
2015#14,4826
2014#8,48513
2013#11,0009
2012#16,8695
2011#7,78315
2010#11,2469
2009#10,67910
2008#15,4056
2007#17,6365
2006#11,4179
2005#13,0107
2004#7,82814
2003#9,04811
2002#7,44414
2001#10,1029
2000#8,02712
1999#7,71612
1998#6,07316
1997#7,74211
1996#7,13012
1995#6,64113
1994#5,01619
1993#4,82620
1992#6,00815
1991#2,88640
1990#3,29733
1989#3,25332
1988#2,80337
1987#2,49341
1986#2,34443
1985#2,70435
1984#2,01850
1983#1,88755
1982#1,85058
1981#1,45583
1980#1,51878
1979#1,50378
1978#1,39783
1977#1,45176
1976#1,19195
1975#1,22993
1974#1,070110
1973#933131
1972#993120
1971#828167
1970#781181
1969#731191
1968#651222
1967#577273
1966#546299
1965#499362
1964#487395
1963#478407
1962#445464
1961#428524
1960#406559
1959#400550
1958#416502
1957#352668
1956#332692
1955#338634#2,55810
1954#309749#3,8275
1953#304737
1952#300706
1951#277798
1950#267825
1949#272798#3,2986
1948#254871
1947#259848
1946#242875#3,1736
1945#223861#2,7437
1944#211935#2,19511
1943#2011,046
1942#1961,052
1941#1881,000
1940#188986#2,6718
1939#1781,068#3,4805
1938#1741,160#2,32610
1937#1641,218#3,5185
1936#1671,180#2,18411
1935#1471,352#2,02913
1934#1441,426#2,5639
1933#1371,481#2,7388
1932#1331,689#1,46523
1931#1311,758#2,47110
1930#1271,918#1,96415
1929#1281,930#2,09614
1928#1142,290#2,27013
1927#1182,285#2,52311
1926#1242,120#1,84618
1925#1282,177#1,62822
1924#1232,272#1,77620
1923#1162,337#2,44612
1922#1132,367#2,80110
1921#1082,606#3,5177
1920#1052,491#1,88518
1919#1042,341#1,57622
1918#1032,439#2,26013
1917#982,411#2,42311
1916#992,319#2,38911
1915#942,287#2,18412
1914#921,795#2,4578
1913#891,556#1,44114
1912#881,403#2,5445
1911#901,045#1,2908
1910#901,035#1,1938
1909#92857#1,0838
1908#90860#1,2176
1907#90854#1,2006
1906#94721
1905#94722
1904#101615#1,0646
1903#99589
1902#113526
1901#130388#1,0585
1900#141426
1899#139334
1898#152331
1897#160280
1896#174249
1895#188208
1894#189196
1893#201156
1892#212146
1891#236103
1890#25496
1889#28172
1888#28667
1887#27459
1886#37133
1885#35432
1884#47918
1883#36625
1882#44617
1881#38419
1880#42116
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Velma was already there! It came in at #421, and was given to 16 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 2007–2008, when fewer than 7 girls a year got the name.

See more about Velma
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 2,245 spots since 2024 (#7,967#5,722)
  • 1,490 spots since 2020 (#7,212#5,722)
  • 8,760 spots since 2015 (#14,482#5,722)
  • Biggest jump: 125 spots in 1885 (#479#354)
  • Biggest drop: 165 spots in 1972 (#828#993)
Rise & fade · girls
32 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1912 at #88 (1,403 births)
  • Births halved by 1955, 43 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 14 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 14 yrs · run 1905–1917
  • Top 1,000: 94 yrs · run 1880–1973
Share of babies · girls
1 in 373
  • Highest: 1 in 373 girls born in 1907 were named Velma (0.27%)
  • Latest: 1 in 76,537 girls born in 2025 (0.00%)
  • Its best rank, #88 in 1912, was only 1 in 398 (0.25%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 26.4% of all girls named Velma (22,875) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s358#274 (1887)#366
1890s2,099#139 (1899)#191
1900s6,558#90 (1908)#104
1910s18,631#88 (1912)#95
1920s22,875#105 (1920)#118
1930s14,250#127 (1930)#150
1940s9,272#188 (1941)#223
1950s6,861#267 (1950)#330
1960s3,696#406 (1960)#525
1970s1,134#781 (1970)#1,138
1980s512#1,455 (1981)#2,233
1990s191#2,886 (1991)#5,734
2000s97#7,444 (2002)#11,060
2010s107#5,785 (2018)#10,786
2020s111#5,172 (2022)#6,479

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.

Velma in 1917

girls
#98
2,411 births · 1 in 448 girls
boys
#2,423
11 births · 1 in 84,135 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. #98Velma2,411

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. #2,423Velma11
More about 1917

girls

1,081,267 girls got a published name in 1917; 1 in 448 of them was named Velma, which outranked 98.2% 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 Velma
  1. #95Opal2,541
  2. #96Mae2,507
  3. #97Theresa2,490
  4. #98Velma2,411
  5. #98Nancy2,411
  6. #100Sophie2,382
  7. #101Kathleen2,358
  8. #102Beulah2,232

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

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 84,135 of them was named Velma, which outranked 47.3% 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 Velma
  1. #2,280Whitfield12
  2. #2,280Zebedee12
  3. #2,280Zeno12
  4. #2,423Velma11
  5. #2,423Agapito11
  6. #2,423Agnes11
  7. #2,423Aldrich11
  8. #2,562Adger10
  9. #2,562Algernon10
  10. #2,562Arbie10

Tied with 138 names at #2,423; 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