Girls' name · peaked in 1885
Anna name popularity since 1925
580,846 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Anna. Half of them were born in 1981 or earlier, so the typical Anna is about 45 years old in 2026. Anna peaked in 1885 as the #2 name for girls, and it ranked #107 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 580,846
- Named Anna, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1885
- #2 for girls that year
- In 2025
- #107
- for girls in 2025 (2,521 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.7% girls
- 579,117 girls · 1,729 boys
- Most popular in
- Kentucky
- 1.90× its national share
Peak year is the year Anna made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Anna births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1925. Measured as a share of all babies, Anna peaked earlier, in 1885.
- Steepest fall: Between 1939 and 1944, Anna's share of baby girls fell by 39%, from 1 in 222 to 1 in 365.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Anna's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Anna.
Decade by decade
Babies named Anna in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 55,489 | 224 | – |
| 1930s | 66,598 | 298 | #34 |
| 1940s | 41,282 | 162 | #73 |
| 1950s | 41,701 | 133 | #105 |
| 1960s | 40,935 | 149 | #96 |
| 1970s | 37,813 | 163 | #79 |
| 1980s | 57,327 | 263 | #54 |
| 1990s | 78,595 | 126 | #31 |
| 2000s | 90,325 | 145 | #22 |
| 2010s | 51,326 | 55 | #44 |
| 2020–25 | 17,726 | 11 | #107 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
23.1% of babies named Anna from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Anna is most popular
The index compares Anna's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Anna.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | 1.90× | 18,638 |
| Alaska | 1.69× | 1,467 |
| West Virginia | 1.64× | 8,449 |
| Pennsylvania | 1.48× | 44,178 |
| Tennessee | 1.34× | 16,586 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Anna and were given to at least 1,000 girls from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Girls | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Anna (this page) | 579,117 | 1885 |
| Ana | 110,322 | 2003 |
| Annah | 1,860 | 2001 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Anna's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Anna.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Anna (1885).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data