Girls' name · peaked in 1890
Pearl name popularity since 1925
56,402 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Pearl (97.5% girls, 2.5% boys). Half of them were born in 1940 or earlier, so the typical Pearl is about 86 years old in 2026. Pearl peaked in 1890 as the #24 name for girls, and it ranked #777 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 56,402
- Named Pearl, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1890
- #24 for girls that year
- In 2025
- #777
- for girls in 2025 (350 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 97.5% girls
- 54,979 girls · 1,423 boys
- Most popular in
- Hawaii
- 3.27× its national share
Peak year is the year Pearl 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.
Pearl births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1925. Measured as a share of all babies, Pearl peaked earlier, in 1890.
- Steepest fall: Between 1942 and 1947, Pearl's share of baby girls fell by 50%, from 1 in 1,240 to 1 in 2,490.
- Fastest rise: Between 2008 and 2013, it became 1.8× more common, from 1 in 7,300 baby girls to 1 in 4,140.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Pearl's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Pearl.
Decade by decade
Babies named Pearl 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 | 13,369 | 373 | – |
| 1930s | 13,295 | 497 | #167 |
| 1940s | 7,778 | 282 | #265 |
| 1950s | 4,757 | 158 | #406 |
| 1960s | 2,594 | 68 | #601 |
| 1970s | 1,471 | 34 | #894 |
| 1980s | 1,639 | 11 | #946 |
| 1990s | 1,508 | 0 | #1,119 |
| 2000s | 2,238 | 0 | #1,206 |
| 2010s | 4,160 | 0 | #624 |
| 2020–25 | 2,170 | 0 | #777 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
42.2% of babies named Pearl from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Pearl is most popular
The index compares Pearl'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 Pearl.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 3.27× | 530 |
| West Virginia | 2.15× | 980 |
| South Carolina | 2.11× | 1,531 |
| Louisiana | 1.69× | 1,568 |
| Mississippi | 1.69× | 1,061 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Pearl's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Pearl.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Pearl (1890).
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