Meaning not yet researched.
Paula: US girls given the name each year, 1880 to 2025, from Social Security card applications. 318 in 2025. Its best rank was #38 in 1954.
US births per year · SSA card applications
Peaked at #38 in 1954; #855 in 2025. Every baby recorded as Paula in 2025 was a girl.
Baby name · US data 1880–2025
#855 for US girls in 2025. Its best year was 1954, at #38.
Hover, tap or use the arrow keys for any year. Years with fewer than five babies of a sex are not published by SSA and show as zero.
Paula: US girls given the name each year from 1880 to 2025. 318 girls in 2025. Peak: #38 in 1954 · most girls in one year: 10,156 (1963).
In 2025, 318 US girls were named Paula, making it the 855th most common girls’ name of the year, down 101 places from #754 in 2024. That is 57 fewer than the 375 girls named Paula in 2024. Its best rank for girls was #38, reached in 1954. The most girls given the name in a single year was 10,156, in 1963. For comparison, it was #891 in 2015 and #54 in 1950.
Social Security card records list Paula in every one of the 146 years from 1880 to 2025; in 1880 there were 9 babies with the name. In all, 281,769 US babies have been given the name, 99.6% of them girls and 0.3% boys. Its busiest decade was the 1950s, with 85,028 babies named Paula.
Over the 10 years from 2016 to 2025, 3,497 US girls were named Paula; the busiest of those years was 2023, with 402. In 2025 that was about 1 in 5,054 of the girls in SSA’s list for the year.
Among the states, Paula ranked highest in Texas in 2025, at #433 for girls there. It was not in the top 100 of any state. Related spellings in the SSA files include Paola (24,644 babies since 1880) and Paulina (20,142 babies since 1880). Rarer spellings such as Paulla, Pahola and Pabla are summarised on this page. The open nickname list we use links it to Lina and Polly.
Meaning not yet researched.
We publish a meaning only with a cited source and a confidence label, and never generate one. Meanings are being researched for the most common names first.
Wikidata records this spelling as a given name in Dutch, English, Galician, German, Latvian, Polish, Spanish and Swedish. That is where the name is used, not necessarily where it comes from.
Rare spellings summarised here: Paulla (262), Pahola (193), Pabla (51), Pala (18).
Numbers are all-time US births. Links come from Wikidata’s “said to be the same as” (P460, CC0) and our spelling rule: at most two letters different, with the same sound pattern.
US girls. Rank within each state. SSA leaves out states where fewer than five girls got the name, so 38 are not listed.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank 2025 | Rank 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 78 | #433 | #434 |
| Connecticut | 6 | #531 | — |
| Arizona | 12 | #566 | #485 |
| Florida | 30 | #594 | #515 |
| New Jersey | 12 | #654 | #916 |
| California | 47 | #670 | #588 |
| Georgia | 14 | #743 | — |
| North Carolina | 13 | #765 | #1,203 |
| Colorado | 6 | #876 | #1,001 |
| Illinois | 9 | #990 | #1,408 |
| New York | 15 | #1,016 | #1,054 |
| Indiana | 5 | #1,165 | — |
| Virginia | 5 | #1,329 | — |
Births and national rank for each year SSA lists the name, newest first.
| Year | Girls | Girls rank | Boys | Boys rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 318 | #855 | — | — |
| 2024 | 375 | #754 | — | — |
| 2023 | 402 | #707 | 6 | #11,897 |
| 2022 | 349 | #806 | 6 | #11,948 |
| 2021 | 338 | #823 | — | — |
| 2020 | 331 | #824 | 5 | #13,549 |
| 2019 | 373 | #753 | — | — |
| 2018 | 344 | #794 | — | — |
| 2017 | 319 | #858 | 5 | #13,745 |
| 2016 | 348 | #826 | — | — |
| 2015 | 310 | #891 | 9 | #8,547 |
| 2014 | 267 | #996 | — | — |
| 2013 | 307 | #848 | — | — |
| 2012 | 385 | #725 | — | — |
| 2011 | 325 | #819 | — | — |
| 2010 | 332 | #815 | — | — |
| 2009 | 362 | #782 | 6 | #12,091 |
| 2008 | 448 | #679 | 5 | #14,087 |
| 2007 | 455 | #652 | 5 | #13,882 |
| 2006 | 431 | #669 | — | — |
| 2005 | 416 | #670 | 8 | #8,898 |
| 2004 | 419 | #655 | 6 | #10,975 |
| 2003 | 356 | #720 | — | — |
| 2002 | 416 | #616 | 5 | #12,000 |
| 2001 | 420 | #600 | — | — |
| 2000 | 454 | #574 | 8 | #7,998 |
| 1999 | 446 | #564 | — | — |
| 1998 | 457 | #546 | 5 | #10,863 |
| 1997 | 504 | #490 | — | — |
| 1996 | 552 | #455 | — | — |
| 1995 | 553 | #458 | 8 | #6,822 |
| 1994 | 623 | #402 | 8 | #6,814 |
| 1993 | 630 | #400 | 13 | #4,628 |
| 1992 | 776 | #338 | 5 | #9,444 |
| 1991 | 849 | #320 | 7 | #7,075 |
| 1990 | 940 | #297 | 10 | #5,276 |
| 1989 | 794 | #321 | 16 | #3,573 |
| 1988 | 812 | #304 | 14 | #3,656 |
| 1987 | 903 | #272 | 9 | #4,856 |
| 1986 | 881 | #279 | 11 | #4,059 |
| 1985 | 1,015 | #250 | 10 | #4,261 |
| 1984 | 1,102 | #230 | 11 | #3,868 |
| 1983 | 1,159 | #220 | 14 | #3,190 |
| 1982 | 1,328 | #205 | 18 | #2,674 |
| 1981 | 1,480 | #186 | 12 | #3,557 |
| 1980 | 1,598 | #173 | 8 | #4,832 |
| 1979 | 1,694 | #165 | 10 | #4,003 |
| 1978 | 1,827 | #150 | 10 | #3,783 |
| 1977 | 2,043 | #144 | 12 | #3,330 |
| 1976 | 2,250 | #121 | 7 | #4,788 |
| 1975 | 2,651 | #108 | 17 | #2,512 |
| 1974 | 3,061 | #96 | 18 | #2,339 |
| 1973 | 3,504 | #87 | 19 | #2,192 |
| 1972 | 4,260 | #72 | 13 | #2,784 |
| 1971 | 5,379 | #63 | 15 | #2,526 |
| 1970 | 6,055 | #57 | 22 | #1,920 |
| 1969 | 6,753 | #50 | 22 | #1,795 |
| 1968 | 7,637 | #45 | 23 | #1,679 |
| 1967 | 7,694 | #46 | 23 | #1,640 |
| 1966 | 7,856 | #50 | 13 | #2,310 |
| 1965 | 7,915 | #49 | 19 | #1,844 |
| 1964 | 9,498 | #45 | 17 | #2,022 |
| 1963 | 10,156 | #42 | 27 | #1,537 |
| 1962 | 7,193 | #60 | 10 | #2,802 |
| 1961 | 7,744 | #60 | 19 | #1,925 |
| 1960 | 8,066 | #55 | 16 | #2,100 |
| 1959 | 8,059 | #51 | 21 | #1,789 |
| 1958 | 8,025 | #53 | 27 | #1,529 |
| 1957 | 8,544 | #49 | 15 | #2,168 |
| 1956 | 8,925 | #47 | 22 | #1,707 |
| 1955 | 9,585 | #39 | 13 | #2,285 |
| 1954 | 9,686 | #38 | 12 | #2,407 |
| 1953 | 9,557 | #40 | 15 | #2,085 |
| 1952 | 8,567 | #47 | 17 | #1,923 |
| 1951 | 7,290 | #51 | 8 | #3,010 |
| 1950 | 6,631 | #54 | 9 | #2,722 |
| 1949 | 6,577 | #55 | 18 | #1,806 |
| 1948 | 6,600 | #52 | 10 | #2,573 |
| 1947 | 6,102 | #54 | 8 | #3,040 |
| 1946 | 4,724 | #69 | 12 | #2,243 |
| 1945 | 3,798 | #67 | 11 | #2,215 |
| 1944 | 3,315 | #82 | 14 | #1,958 |
| 1943 | 3,042 | #93 | 17 | #1,815 |
| 1942 | 1,974 | #136 | 9 | #2,668 |
| 1941 | 1,540 | #151 | — | — |
| 1940 | 1,372 | #155 | 9 | #2,625 |
| 1939 | 1,348 | #159 | 5 | #3,847 |
| 1938 | 1,318 | #163 | 8 | #2,806 |
| 1937 | 1,212 | #165 | — | — |
| 1936 | 982 | #185 | 6 | #3,445 |
| 1935 | 774 | #222 | — | — |
| 1934 | 759 | #228 | 11 | #2,361 |
| 1933 | 611 | #245 | — | — |
| 1932 | 658 | #239 | — | — |
| 1931 | 585 | #250 | 7 | #3,323 |
| 1930 | 614 | #252 | 9 | #2,953 |
| 1929 | 619 | #254 | 5 | #4,404 |
| 1928 | 558 | #276 | — | — |
| 1927 | 602 | #271 | — | — |
| 1926 | 541 | #286 | 5 | #4,673 |
| 1925 | 464 | #308 | — | — |
| 1924 | 418 | #329 | — | — |
| 1923 | 378 | #337 | — | — |
| 1922 | 305 | #374 | — | — |
| 1921 | 326 | #373 | — | — |
| 1920 | 343 | #354 | — | — |
| 1919 | 245 | #415 | — | — |
| 1918 | 265 | #401 | — | — |
| 1917 | 303 | #360 | 5 | #4,434 |
| 1916 | 289 | #361 | — | — |
| 1915 | 228 | #399 | — | — |
| 1914 | 184 | #390 | — | — |
| 1913 | 150 | #398 | — | — |
| 1912 | 164 | #358 | — | — |
| 1911 | 105 | #394 | — | — |
| 1910 | 89 | #419 | — | — |
| 1909 | 76 | #424 | — | — |
| 1908 | 83 | #403 | — | — |
| 1907 | 76 | #408 | — | — |
| 1906 | 89 | #355 | — | — |
| 1905 | 68 | #411 | — | — |
| 1904 | 79 | #371 | — | — |
| 1903 | 57 | #424 | — | — |
| 1902 | 41 | #499 | — | — |
| 1901 | 50 | #426 | — | — |
| 1900 | 47 | #497 | — | — |
| 1899 | 40 | #463 | — | — |
| 1898 | 55 | #418 | — | — |
| 1897 | 45 | #438 | — | — |
| 1896 | 47 | #421 | — | — |
| 1895 | 37 | #485 | — | — |
| 1894 | 34 | #491 | — | — |
| 1893 | 47 | #393 | — | — |
| 1892 | 40 | #425 | — | — |
| 1891 | 44 | #383 | — | — |
| 1890 | 35 | #433 | — | — |
| 1889 | 33 | #427 | — | — |
| 1888 | 27 | #483 | — | — |
| 1887 | 26 | #444 | — | — |
| 1886 | 21 | #489 | — | — |
| 1885 | 16 | #554 | — | — |
| 1884 | 12 | #634 | — | — |
| 1883 | 19 | #447 | — | — |
| 1882 | 6 | #880 | — | — |
| 1881 | 9 | #616 | — | — |
| 1880 | 9 | #621 | — | — |
About the data: counts are Social Security card applications for US births, for names given to at least five babies of a sex in a year (SSA, names.zip, public domain). Ranks follow SSA’s own order: most births first, ties alphabetical. Files retrieved 2026-10-05 (checksum on our sources page).