How Many People Are Named Verna?
An estimated 15,362 people in the United States have the first name Verna. It is predominantly female (99.2%). The average bearer is 70 years old, and Verna peaked in popularity in 1918 with 1,885 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Verna 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 Verna paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Verna is overwhelmingly female, 525 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 70, Verna is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1966.
- Verna has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
15,362
About 1 in 22,312 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Female
99.2% confidence
Average Age
70
years old
Peak Year
1918
1,885 births
Total Registered
69,586
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Verna
Verna is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 69,586 total births registered, 99.2% were female.
Verna as a male name
Ranked #6,723 in 1978
5 male births in 1978
Peak: 1922 (21 births)
Verna as a female name
Ranked #4,999 in 2024
27 female births in 2024
Peak: 1918 (1,873 births)
Verna: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Verna span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 16,419 babies were registered. Verna has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Verna by Decade
How has Verna 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 | 1,057 | 5 | 1,052 | |
| 1890s | 3,036 | 0 | 3,036 | |
| 1900s | 4,783 | 31 | 4,752 | |
| 1910s | 13,304 | 90 | 13,214 | |
| 1920s | 16,419 | 154 | 16,265 | |
| 1930s | 10,682 | 100 | 10,582 | |
| 1940s | 7,922 | 54 | 7,868 | |
| 1950s | 6,210 | 50 | 6,160 | |
| 1960s | 3,384 | 29 | 3,355 | |
| 1970s | 1,177 | 12 | 1,165 | |
| 1980s | 537 | 0 | 537 | |
| 1990s | 334 | 0 | 334 | |
| 2000s | 288 | 0 | 288 | |
| 2010s | 310 | 0 | 310 | |
| 2020s | 143 | 0 | 143 | |
Verna by State
Birth registrations for Verna span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, Texas, Illinois. The lowest are in Rhode Island, Nevada, Delaware. On average, about 1,121 Vernas were registered per state.
Verna + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Verna as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Verna
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
Verna: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Verna?
We estimate approximately 15,362 people named Verna 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 22,312 Americans share this first name.
Is Verna a common name?
Verna is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 69,586 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Verna most popular?
Verna reached peak popularity in 1918, when 1,885 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Verna is approximately 70 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Verna a female name?
Verna is predominantly female. 99.2% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Verna Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Verna Smith, Verna Johnson, Verna 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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