How Many People Are Named Ellen?
An estimated 134,575 people in the United States have the first name Ellen. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #397 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 61 years old, and Ellen peaked in popularity in 1951 with 5,956 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Ellen 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 Ellen paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Ellen is overwhelmingly female, 745 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Ellen has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
134,575
About 1 in 2,547 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
61
years old
Peak Year
1951
5,956 births
Total Registered
275,793
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Ellen
Ellen is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 275,793 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Ellen as a male name
Ranked #7,935 in 1993
6 male births in 1993
Peak: 1941 (22 births)
Ellen as a female name
Ranked #1,028 in 2024
244 female births in 2024
Peak: 1951 (5,945 births)
Ellen: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Ellen span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 55,505 babies were registered. Ellen has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Ellen by Decade
How has Ellen 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 | 5,414 | 12 | 5,402 | |
| 1890s | 7,457 | 22 | 7,435 | |
| 1900s | 8,344 | 5 | 8,339 | |
| 1910s | 21,551 | 51 | 21,500 | |
| 1920s | 28,491 | 100 | 28,391 | |
| 1930s | 25,267 | 128 | 25,139 | |
| 1940s | 45,551 | 146 | 45,405 | |
| 1950s | 55,505 | 115 | 55,390 | |
| 1960s | 34,240 | 94 | 34,146 | |
| 1970s | 11,442 | 20 | 11,422 | |
| 1980s | 10,279 | 39 | 10,240 | |
| 1990s | 11,359 | 13 | 11,346 | |
| 2000s | 5,543 | 0 | 5,543 | |
| 2010s | 3,987 | 0 | 3,987 | |
| 2020s | 1,363 | 0 | 1,363 | |
Ellen by State
Birth registrations for Ellen span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois. The lowest are in Nevada, Alaska, Wyoming. On average, about 4,935 Ellens were registered per state.
Ellen + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Ellen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Ellen
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
Ellen: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ellen?
We estimate approximately 134,575 people named Ellen 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 2,547 Americans share this first name.
Is Ellen a common name?
Ellen is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.6% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 275,793 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Ellen most popular?
Ellen reached peak popularity in 1951, when 5,956 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Ellen is approximately 61 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Ellen a female name?
Ellen is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Ellen Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Ellen Smith, Ellen Johnson, Ellen 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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