girls' name ★ peaked 1957

Cynthia

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,014 Trend ↓ Falling 17%
Rank 2025
#1,014
among girls · ↓185 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
247
named Cynthia · -25% vs 2024
How common
1 in 6,507
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1957
39,416 babies
All-time total
713,412
#35 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Cynthia popularity over time

713,412 babies have been named Cynthia since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
6.2512.518.752518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s 582 – 582 58 – #197
1890s 701 – 701 70 +20% #282
1900s 694 – 694 69 -1% #360
1910s 1,911 – 1,911 191 +175% #367
1920s 3,661 – 3,661 366 +92% #297
1930s 9,666 29 9,695 970 +165% #152
1940s 58,061 146 58,207 5,821 +500% #27
1950s 263,432 460 263,892 26,389 +353% #7
1960s 196,597 553 197,150 19,715 -25% #8
1970s 80,196 333 80,529 8,053 -59% #24
1980s 41,666 269 41,935 4,194 -48% #59
1990s 31,313 158 31,471 3,147 -25% #88
2000s 15,172 11 15,183 1,518 -52% #164
2010s 5,946 – 5,946 595 -61% #381
2020s (to 2025) 1,855 – 1,855 309 -48% #806

Where Cynthia is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 238 0.15 outside top 500
2027 230 0.14 outside top 500
2028 223 0.14 outside top 500
2029 218 0.14 outside top 500
2030 214 0.13 outside top 500

Where Cynthia is most popular

Girls named Cynthia per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.191 per 1,000. Strongest in Wisconsin, Oregon, and Kentucky.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Cynthia born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Wisconsin 39 0.379 +99%
Oregon 22 0.338 +77%
Kentucky 28 0.327 +72%
Indiana 40 0.285 +49%
Washington 41 0.284 +49%
Illinois 64 0.280 +47%
Ohio 62 0.261 +37%
California 217 0.258 +35%
Michigan 46 0.253 +32%
New York 99 0.250 +31%
Georgia 56 0.247 +29%
Oklahoma 18 0.245 +28%
Pennsylvania 54 0.228 +20%
Tennessee 36 0.227 +19%
North Carolina 50 0.220 +15%
Texas 172 0.214 +12%
Arizona 29 0.207 +8%
Colorado 21 0.188 ≈ national
South Carolina 16 0.178 -7%
Florida 71 0.166 -13%
Nebraska 5 0.139 -27%
Missouri 16 0.133 -30%
Nevada 6 0.129 -32%
Kansas 7 0.121 -36%
Iowa 7 0.120 -37%
Minnesota 11 0.102 -47%
Massachusetts 12 0.099 -48%
Arkansas 5 0.095 -50%
Alabama 8 0.085 -55%
Utah 6 0.072 -62%
Virginia 12 0.070 -63%
New Jersey 11 0.061 -68%
Louisiana 5 0.057 -70%
Maryland 5 0.047 -75%
Alaska – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Cynthia

Cynthia is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,014 in 2025 with 247 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 713,412 American babies have been named Cynthia. Its peak came in 1957, when 39,416 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1950s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Cynthia stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Cynthia?

The median living Cynthia is about 64 years old; half are between 54 and 69. An estimated 611 thousand people named Cynthia are alive in the United States today.

median 64 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Cynthia year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 247 #1,014 – –
2024 331 #829 – –
2023 308 #872 – –
2022 315 #885 – –
2021 346 #806 – –
2020 308 #873 – –
2019 378 #748 – –
2018 419 #692 – –
2017 462 #636 – –
2016 552 #563 – –
2015 580 #540 – –
2014 636 #492 – –
2013 601 #500 – –
2012 750 #419 – –
2011 733 #428 – –
2010 835 #381 – –
2009 893 #361 – –
2008 1,076 #310 – –
2007 1,234 #278 – –
2006 1,420 #239 – –
2005 1,574 #221 – –
2004 1,521 #222 – –
2003 1,662 #199 5 #11,224
2002 1,833 #176 6 #9,608
2001 1,921 #169 – –
2000 2,038 #164 – –
1995 2,957 #113 12 #4,854
1990 3,797 #88 26 #2,562
1985 4,129 #66 30 #1,923
1980 4,700 #64 21 #2,380
1975 6,539 #40 36 #1,481
1970 12,913 #25 53 #1,134
1965 19,239 #9 61 #943
1960 26,706 #9 68 #917
1955 27,178 #11 48 #1,085
1950 14,447 #23 30 #1,320
1945 3,127 #90 12 #2,032
1940 1,882 #133 12 #2,103
1935 990 #179 9 #2,571
1930 596 #256 – –
1925 340 #371 – –
1920 285 #388 – –
1915 216 #405 – –
1910 86 #428 – –
1905 63 #427 – –
1900 87 #360 – –
1895 58 #371 – –
1890 79 #282 – –
1885 59 #259 – –
1880 61 #197 – –

Famous people named Cynthia

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Cynthia Erivo Cynthia Erivo English actress and singer (born 1987) Contemporary
  2. 2 Cynthia Nixon Cynthia Nixon American actress and politician b. 1966 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Cynthia Lennon Cynthia Lennon First wife of John Lennon (1939–2015) Contemporary
  4. 4 Cynthia Rhodes American actress (born 1956) Contemporary
  5. 5 Cynthia Rothrock Cynthia Rothrock American actress and martial artist b. 1957 · Contemporary
  6. 6 Cynthia Gibb Cynthia Gibb American actress and model (born 1963) Contemporary
  7. 7 Cynthia Watros Cynthia Watros American actress b. 1968 · Contemporary
  8. 8 Cynthia Cooper-Dyke Cynthia Cooper-Dyke American basketball player and coach (born 1963) Contemporary
  9. 9 Cynthia McKinney Cynthia McKinney American politician and activist (born 1955) Contemporary
  10. 10 Cynthia Klitbo Cynthia Klitbo Mexican actress (born 1967) Contemporary
  11. 11 Cynthia Ozick American writer (born 1928) Contemporary
  12. 12 Cynthia McLeod Cynthia McLeod Surinamese novelist (born 1936) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Cynthia, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Cynthia?

The median living Cynthia is about 64 years old. Half of all living Cynthias are between 54 and 69 years old.

How many people named Cynthia are alive today?

An estimated 611 thousand people named Cynthia are alive in the United States, based on 713,412 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

How popular is the name Cynthia in 2025?

Cynthia ranked #1,014 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 247 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Cynthia?

713,412 babies have been named Cynthia in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Cynthia most popular?

Cynthia peaked in 1957, when 39,416 newborns received the name.

Is Cynthia a boy or girl name?

Cynthia is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Cynthia rising or falling?

Cynthia is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Cynthia become more popular?

Cynthia is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 214 girls named Cynthia in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Cynthia?

Well-known people named Cynthia include Cynthia Erivo (actor), Cynthia Nixon (actor), Cynthia Lennon (companion).

Names like Cynthia

Names that sound and feel close to Cynthia: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Cynthia with similar names → More names starting with C →