Girls' name · peaked in 1987
Bethany name popularity since 1925
100,985 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Bethany. Half of them were born in 1990 or earlier, so the typical Bethany is about 36 years old in 2026. Bethany peaked in 1987 as the #87 name for girls, and it ranked #752 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 100,985
- Named Bethany, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #752
- for girls in 2025 (362 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.8% girls
- 100,801 girls · 184 boys
- Most popular in
- Rhode Island
- 2.79× its national share
Peak year is the year Bethany 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.
Bethany births per year, 1925–2025
1987 was the biggest year for Bethany both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1958 and 1963, Bethany became 2.4× more common, from 1 in 13,800 baby girls to 1 in 5,770.
- Steepest fall: Between 2004 and 2009, its share of baby girls fell by 41%, from 1 in 1,130 to 1 in 1,900.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Bethany's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Bethany.
Decade by decade
Babies named Bethany 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 | 64 | 0 | – |
| 1930s | 164 | 0 | #1,611 |
| 1940s | 471 | 0 | #1,378 |
| 1950s | 1,514 | 0 | #727 |
| 1960s | 3,807 | 0 | #483 |
| 1970s | 12,180 | 30 | #218 |
| 1980s | 29,331 | 104 | #94 |
| 1990s | 27,753 | 37 | #116 |
| 2000s | 15,369 | 13 | #227 |
| 2010s | 7,615 | 0 | #415 |
| 2020–25 | 2,533 | 0 | #752 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
46.8% of babies named Bethany from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Millennial years (1981–1996). The full split by generation:
Where Bethany is most popular
The index compares Bethany'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 Bethany.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island | 2.79× | 984 |
| Maine | 2.41× | 1,025 |
| New Hampshire | 2.05× | 643 |
| Oregon | 1.63× | 1,525 |
| Kentucky | 1.58× | 2,632 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Bethany 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Bethany (this page) | 100,801 | 1987 |
| Bethanie | 3,733 | 1996 |
| Bethani | 1,020 | 1988 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Bethany's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Bethany.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Bethany (1987).
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