How Many People Are Named Barbara?
An estimated 694,059 people in the United States have the first name Barbara. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #51 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 71 years old, and Barbara peaked in popularity in 1947 with 48,889 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Melissa (690,697).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Barbara as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Barbara paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Barbara is overwhelmingly female, 4,135 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 71, Barbara is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1965.
- Barbara has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
694,059
About 1 in 494 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
71
years old
Peak Year
1947
48,889 births
Total Registered
1,440,537
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Barbara
Barbara is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 1,440,537 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Barbara as a male name
Ranked #8,819 in 1993
5 male births in 1993
Peak: 1942 (164 births)
Barbara as a female name
Ranked #860 in 2024
313 female births in 2024
Peak: 1947 (48,800 births)
Barbara: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Barbara span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1940s, when 426,425 babies were registered. Barbara has declined significantly from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Barbara by Decade
How has Barbara tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 1,820 | 0 | 1,820 | |
| 1890s | 2,783 | 0 | 2,783 | |
| 1900s | 3,999 | 0 | 3,999 | |
| 1910s | 23,736 | 32 | 23,704 | |
| 1920s | 97,471 | 261 | 97,210 | |
| 1930s | 297,607 | 1,188 | 296,419 | |
| 1940s | 426,425 | 1,158 | 425,267 | |
| 1950s | 346,415 | 692 | 345,723 | |
| 1960s | 160,278 | 504 | 159,774 | |
| 1970s | 42,400 | 162 | 42,238 | |
| 1980s | 19,250 | 112 | 19,138 | |
| 1990s | 8,881 | 26 | 8,855 | |
| 2000s | 4,721 | 0 | 4,721 | |
| 2010s | 3,256 | 0 | 3,256 | |
| 2020s | 1,495 | 0 | 1,495 | |
Barbara by State
Birth registrations for Barbara span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Pennsylvania, California. The lowest are in Alaska, Nevada, Wyoming. On average, about 27,990 Barbaras were registered per state.
Barbara + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Barbara as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Barbara
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
Barbara: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Barbara?
We estimate approximately 694,059 people named Barbara are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 494 Americans share this first name.
Is Barbara a common name?
Barbara is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,440,537 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Barbara most popular?
Barbara reached peak popularity in 1947, when 48,889 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Barbara is approximately 71 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Barbara a female name?
Barbara is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Barbara Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Barbara Smith, Barbara Johnson, Barbara Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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