girls' name ★ peaked 1920

Mildred

Meaning mild Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,973 Trend ↑ Rising 16%

From the name of an 8th-century English saint, Old English Mildþrȳþ (from milde (“mild”) +‎ þrȳþ (“strength”)).

Rank 2025
#1,973
among girls · ↑120 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
98
named Mildred · +7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 16,401
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1920
18,099 babies
All-time total
452,998
#78 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Mildred popularity over time

452,998 babies have been named Mildred 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
510152018801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 2,919 5 2,924 292 – #69
1890s 13,792 47 13,839 1,384 +373% #17
1900s 36,173 152 36,325 3,633 +162% #8
1910s 123,998 349 124,347 12,435 +242% #6
1920s 147,155 469 147,624 14,762 +19% #6
1930s 61,738 351 62,089 6,209 -58% #21
1940s 33,071 141 33,212 3,321 -47% #58
1950s 17,573 50 17,623 1,762 -47% #135
1960s 7,695 12 7,707 771 -56% #275
1970s 2,858 7 2,865 287 -63% #454
1980s 1,378 – 1,378 138 -52% #883
1990s 874 – 874 87 -37% #1,348
2000s 807 – 807 81 -8% #2,014
2010s 779 – 779 78 -3% #2,077
2020s (to 2025) 605 – 605 101 +29% #1,841

Where Mildred 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 100 0.06 outside top 500
2027 102 0.06 outside top 500
2028 104 0.06 outside top 500
2029 106 0.07 outside top 500
2030 107 0.07 outside top 500

Where Mildred is most popular

Girls named Mildred per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.063 per 1,000. Strongest in Missouri, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania.

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 Mildred 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
Missouri 10 0.083 +32%
Tennessee 13 0.082 +31%
Pennsylvania 19 0.080 +28%
Illinois 18 0.079 +25%
Indiana 10 0.071 +14%
Georgia 16 0.070 +12%
Ohio 15 0.063 ≈ national
Virginia 10 0.059 -6%
Kentucky 5 0.058 -7%
Alabama 5 0.053 -15%
Texas 39 0.048 -23%
North Carolina 11 0.048 -23%
Minnesota 5 0.046 -26%
Washington 5 0.035 -45%
California 28 0.033 -47%
New York 11 0.028 -56%
Michigan 5 0.027 -56%
Florida 5 0.012 -81%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Wisconsin – – –
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 Mildred

Mildred is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #1,973 in 2025 with 98 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 452,998 American babies have been named Mildred. Its peak came in 1920, when 18,099 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1920s.

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

How old are people named Mildred?

The median living Mildred is about 79 years old; half are between 68 and 87. An estimated 70 thousand people named Mildred are alive in the United States today.

median 79 020406080100

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

Mildred 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 98 #1,973 – –
2024 92 #2,093 – –
2023 109 #1,841 – –
2022 108 #1,882 – –
2021 102 #1,940 – –
2020 96 #1,974 – –
2019 77 #2,347 – –
2018 93 #2,077 – –
2017 83 #2,265 – –
2016 79 #2,378 – –
2015 88 #2,159 – –
2014 82 #2,285 – –
2013 74 #2,454 – –
2012 64 #2,757 – –
2011 70 #2,577 – –
2010 69 #2,632 – –
2009 69 #2,666 – –
2008 87 #2,262 – –
2007 93 #2,158 – –
2006 76 #2,453 – –
2005 73 #2,426 – –
2004 80 #2,224 – –
2003 90 #2,014 – –
2002 83 #2,072 – –
2001 75 #2,184 – –
2000 81 #2,046 – –
1995 84 #1,743 – –
1990 109 #1,441 – –
1985 107 #1,267 – –
1980 159 #944 – –
1975 256 #615 – –
1970 482 #454 7 #4,101
1965 749 #329 – –
1960 1,081 #275 7 #3,550
1955 1,642 #197 10 #2,704
1950 2,296 #135 5 #4,028
1945 2,960 #93 8 #2,693
1940 3,938 #58 32 #1,199
1935 5,546 #35 32 #1,183
1930 9,356 #21 37 #1,167
1925 14,453 #9 45 #1,036
1920 18,060 #6 39 #1,149
1915 15,254 #6 38 #1,051
1910 5,692 #8 18 #724
1905 3,758 #8 17 #582
1900 2,800 #20 13 #720
1895 1,474 #39 6 #1,044
1890 635 #71 6 #960
1885 245 #111 – –
1880 132 #121 – –

Famous people named Mildred

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

  1. 1 Mildred Harris Mildred Harris American actress (1901–1944) Contemporary
  2. 2 Mildred Gillars Mildred Gillars American Nazi propagandist (1900–1988) Contemporary
  3. 3 Mildred Natwick Mildred Natwick American actress (1905–1994) Contemporary
  4. 4 Mildred Dunnock Mildred Dunnock American actress (1901–1991) Contemporary
  5. 5 Mildred Davis Mildred Davis American actress (1901–1969) Contemporary
  6. 6 Mildred Bailey Mildred Bailey Native American jazz singer (1907–1951) Contemporary
  7. 7 Mildred Dresselhaus Mildred Dresselhaus American physicist and nanotechnologist (1930–2017) Contemporary
  8. 8 Mildred McDaniel American high jumper (1933–2004) Contemporary
  9. 9 Mildred Wiley Mildred Wiley American high jumper 1901–2000 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Mildred?

The median living Mildred is about 79 years old. Half of all living Mildreds are between 68 and 87 years old.

How many people named Mildred are alive today?

An estimated 70 thousand people named Mildred are alive in the United States, based on 452,998 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Mildred mean?

From the name of an 8th-century English saint, Old English Mildþrȳþ (from milde (“mild”) +‎ þrȳþ (“strength”)).

How popular is the name Mildred in 2025?

Mildred ranked #1,973 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 98 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Mildred?

452,998 babies have been named Mildred in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Mildred most popular?

Mildred peaked in 1920, when 18,099 newborns received the name.

Is Mildred a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Mildred rising or falling?

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

Will Mildred become more popular?

Mildred is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 107 girls named Mildred 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 Mildred?

Well-known people named Mildred include Mildred Harris (actor), Mildred Gillars (social activist), Mildred Natwick (actor).

Names like Mildred

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

Compare Mildred with similar names → More names starting with M →