girls' name ★ peaked 2020

Nola

Meaning en (English) Gender Girl Rank 2025 #822 Trend ↓ Falling 26%

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Rank 2025
#822
among girls · ↓57 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
331
named Nola · -10% vs 2024
How common
1 in 4,856
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2020
537 babies
All-time total
26,271
#897 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Nola popularity over time

26,271 babies have been named Nola 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 424 – 424 42 – #282
1890s 929 – 929 93 +119% #254
1900s 1,334 – 1,334 133 +44% #266
1910s 2,630 – 2,630 263 +97% #306
1920s 3,163 9 3,172 317 +21% #359
1930s 3,001 – 3,001 300 -5% #350
1940s 2,475 – 2,475 248 -18% #411
1950s 2,183 – 2,183 218 -12% #521
1960s 1,130 – 1,130 113 -48% #793
1970s 516 – 516 52 -54% #1,485
1980s 422 – 422 42 -18% #1,732
1990s 305 – 305 31 -28% #3,283
2000s 1,461 – 1,461 146 +379% #917
2010s 3,696 – 3,696 370 +153% #607
2020s (to 2025) 2,593 – 2,593 432 +17% #553

Where Nola 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 317 0.20 outside top 500
2027 305 0.19 outside top 500
2028 296 0.18 outside top 500
2029 288 0.18 outside top 500
2030 281 0.18 outside top 500

Where Nola is most popular

Girls named Nola per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.253 per 1,000. Strongest in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Georgia.

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 Nola 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
Louisiana 84 0.960 +279%
Mississippi 38 0.812 +221%
Georgia 121 0.533 +110%
District of Columbia 6 0.506 +100%
Alabama 47 0.501 +98%
Wisconsin 51 0.495 +95%
North Carolina 112 0.492 +94%
Kentucky 39 0.456 +80%
Tennessee 69 0.436 +72%
South Carolina 39 0.434 +71%
Michigan 77 0.423 +67%
Virginia 70 0.411 +62%
Indiana 56 0.399 +57%
Connecticut 21 0.361 +42%
Ohio 84 0.354 +40%
Minnesota 38 0.352 +39%
Nevada 16 0.344 +36%
New Jersey 62 0.343 +36%
Pennsylvania 79 0.334 +32%
Maryland 34 0.321 +27%
Oklahoma 22 0.299 +18%
Washington 42 0.291 +15%
Massachusetts 35 0.289 +14%
Missouri 34 0.282 +11%
Iowa 16 0.274 +8%
West Virginia 7 0.267 +5%
Illinois 61 0.266 +5%
New York 94 0.237 -6%
Florida 86 0.201 -21%
Arizona 26 0.185 -27%
Texas 139 0.173 -32%
Oregon 10 0.154 -39%
Colorado 17 0.152 -40%
California 109 0.130 -49%
Arkansas 6 0.114 -55%
Kansas 5 0.087 -66%
Utah 5 0.060 -76%
Alaska – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
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 Nola

Nola is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #822 in 2025 with 331 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 26,271 American babies have been named Nola. Its peak came in 2020, when 537 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

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

How old are people named Nola?

The median living Nola is about 19 years old; half are between 8 and 70. An estimated 14 thousand people named Nola are alive in the United States today.

median 19 020406080100

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

Nola 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 331 #822 – –
2024 369 #765 – –
2023 381 #740 – –
2022 472 #627 – –
2021 503 #596 – –
2020 537 #553 – –
2019 500 #607 – –
2018 461 #643 – –
2017 379 #744 – –
2016 350 #821 – –
2015 368 #770 – –
2014 348 #804 – –
2013 350 #776 – –
2012 334 #805 – –
2011 292 #894 – –
2010 314 #857 – –
2009 280 #957 – –
2008 299 #917 – –
2007 257 #1,029 – –
2006 202 #1,203 – –
2005 104 #1,872 – –
2004 86 #2,110 – –
2003 80 #2,181 – –
2002 59 #2,631 – –
2001 44 #3,186 – –
2000 50 #2,889 – –
1995 29 #3,747 – –
1990 24 #4,192 – –
1985 34 #2,784 – –
1980 38 #2,520 – –
1975 40 #2,153 – –
1970 66 #1,513 – –
1965 92 #1,094 – –
1960 168 #793 – –
1955 195 #671 – –
1950 247 #521 – –
1945 231 #473 – –
1940 259 #425 – –
1935 286 #375 – –
1930 322 #382 – –
1925 279 #415 – –
1920 306 #379 – –
1915 320 #334 – –
1910 158 #306 – –
1905 127 #296 – –
1900 129 #289 – –
1895 111 #266 – –
1890 60 #327 – –
1885 39 #328 – –
1880 23 #340 – –

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Nola?

The median living Nola is about 19 years old. Half of all living Nolas are between 8 and 70 years old.

How many people named Nola are alive today?

An estimated 14 thousand people named Nola are alive in the United States, based on 26,271 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Nola mean?

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How popular is the name Nola in 2025?

Nola ranked #822 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 331 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Nola?

26,271 babies have been named Nola in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Nola most popular?

Nola peaked in 2020, when 537 newborns received the name.

Is Nola a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Nola rising or falling?

Nola has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Nola become more popular?

Nola is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 281 girls named Nola in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Names like Nola

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

Compare Nola with similar names → More names starting with N →