girls' name ★ peaked 1938

Loretta

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #606 Trend ↑ Rising 75%

A female given name from Latin, variant of Lauretta, Italian diminutive of Laura; or a form of Loreto.

Rank 2025
#606
among girls · ↑71 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
485
named Loretta · +15% vs 2024
How common
1 in 3,314
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1938
3,931 babies
All-time total
178,066
#225 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Loretta popularity over time

178,066 babies have been named Loretta 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
123418801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 1,036 – 1,036 104 – #165
1890s 3,382 – 3,382 338 +226% #118
1900s 5,151 – 5,151 515 +52% #114
1910s 14,570 37 14,607 1,461 +184% #113
1920s 21,071 62 21,133 2,113 +45% #120
1930s 31,537 145 31,682 3,168 +50% #62
1940s 30,121 83 30,204 3,020 -5% #69
1950s 30,394 80 30,474 3,047 +1% #120
1960s 22,070 80 22,150 2,215 -27% #138
1970s 8,640 10 8,650 865 -61% #228
1980s 3,279 5 3,284 328 -62% #439
1990s 1,380 – 1,380 138 -58% #922
2000s 932 – 932 93 -32% #1,818
2010s 1,804 – 1,804 180 +94% #1,023
2020s (to 2025) 2,197 – 2,197 366 +103% #606

Where Loretta 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 534 0.33 outside top 500
2027 579 0.36 outside top 500
2028 620 0.39 #484
2029 657 0.41 #468
2030 691 0.43 #449

Where Loretta is most popular

Girls named Loretta per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.237 per 1,000. Strongest in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota.

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 Loretta 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 127 1.23 +420%
Minnesota 127 1.18 +396%
North Dakota 10 0.761 +221%
South Dakota 10 0.700 +195%
Iowa 38 0.650 +174%
Idaho 19 0.568 +139%
Missouri 63 0.523 +120%
Kentucky 44 0.514 +117%
Indiana 67 0.477 +101%
Oregon 27 0.415 +75%
Michigan 71 0.390 +64%
Pennsylvania 88 0.372 +57%
Ohio 85 0.358 +51%
Oklahoma 26 0.353 +49%
Washington 48 0.332 +40%
Maine 5 0.323 +36%
Colorado 34 0.305 +28%
Alabama 27 0.288 +21%
Arizona 39 0.278 +17%
Illinois 63 0.275 +16%
Nebraska 9 0.250 +6%
North Carolina 57 0.250 +6%
Texas 201 0.250 +5%
Maryland 23 0.217 -9%
Tennessee 34 0.215 -10%
Georgia 44 0.194 -18%
West Virginia 5 0.191 -20%
Kansas 11 0.191 -20%
Virginia 30 0.176 -26%
New York 64 0.162 -32%
Arkansas 8 0.151 -36%
California 109 0.130 -45%
Florida 54 0.126 -47%
South Carolina 11 0.122 -48%
Mississippi 5 0.107 -55%
Massachusetts 12 0.099 -58%
Louisiana 6 0.069 -71%
Utah 5 0.060 -75%
Alaska – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Montana – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Loretta

Loretta is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #606 in 2025 with 485 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 178,066 American babies have been named Loretta. Its peak came in 1938, when 3,931 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1930s.

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 Loretta stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Loretta?

The median living Loretta is about 68 years old; half are between 59 and 79. An estimated 92 thousand people named Loretta are alive in the United States today.

median 68 020406080100

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

Loretta 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 485 #606 – –
2024 423 #677 – –
2023 371 #757 – –
2022 346 #810 – –
2021 300 #902 – –
2020 272 #943 – –
2019 252 #1,023 – –
2018 232 #1,087 – –
2017 229 #1,103 – –
2016 240 #1,085 – –
2015 219 #1,154 – –
2014 179 #1,324 – –
2013 121 #1,720 – –
2012 124 #1,695 – –
2011 111 #1,824 – –
2010 97 #2,052 – –
2009 84 #2,328 – –
2008 112 #1,896 – –
2007 105 #1,963 – –
2006 113 #1,818 – –
2005 103 #1,887 – –
2004 90 #2,033 – –
2003 80 #2,180 – –
2002 76 #2,191 – –
2001 77 #2,141 – –
2000 92 #1,859 – –
1995 124 #1,334 – –
1990 207 #922 – –
1985 287 #645 – –
1980 418 #494 – –
1975 778 #301 – –
1970 1,365 #231 5 #5,158
1965 1,839 #185 5 #4,240
1960 3,191 #138 13 #2,387
1955 3,431 #123 11 #2,509
1950 2,720 #120 7 #3,207
1945 2,661 #107 8 #2,677
1940 3,502 #69 11 #2,263
1935 3,365 #69 14 #1,997
1930 2,482 #105 13 #2,250
1925 2,255 #122 9 #3,052
1920 2,122 #120 – –
1915 1,810 #115 5 #4,160
1910 655 #124 – –
1905 527 #121 – –
1900 535 #121 – –
1895 365 #126 – –
1890 228 #156 – –
1885 91 #198 – –
1880 41 #243 – –

Famous people named Loretta

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

  1. 1 Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn American country singer (1932–2022) Contemporary
  2. 2 Loretta Swit Loretta Swit American actress (1937–2025) Contemporary
  3. 3 Loretta Young Loretta Young American actress (1913–2000) Contemporary
  4. 4 Loretta Devine Loretta Devine American actress (born 1949) Contemporary
  5. 5 Loretta Lynch Loretta Lynch American attorney (born 1959) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Loretta?

The median living Loretta is about 68 years old. Half of all living Lorettas are between 59 and 79 years old.

How many people named Loretta are alive today?

An estimated 92 thousand people named Loretta are alive in the United States, based on 178,066 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Loretta mean?

A female given name from Latin, variant of Lauretta, Italian diminutive of Laura; or a form of Loreto.

How popular is the name Loretta in 2025?

Loretta ranked #606 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 485 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Loretta?

178,066 babies have been named Loretta in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Loretta most popular?

Loretta peaked in 1938, when 3,931 newborns received the name.

Is Loretta a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Loretta rising or falling?

Loretta is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Loretta become more popular?

Loretta is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 691 girls named Loretta in 2030, which would rank around #449. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Loretta?

Well-known people named Loretta include Loretta Lynn (singer), Loretta Swit (actor), Loretta Young (actor).

Names like Loretta

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

Compare Loretta with similar names → More names starting with L →