girls' name ★ peaked 1951

Patricia

Meaning noble Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,336 Trend ↓ Falling 29%

From Latin patricia (“noble”); later also seen as the feminine form of the saint's name Patrick.

Rank 2025
#1,336
among girls · ↓41 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
167
named Patricia · -7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 9,624
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1951
56,574 babies
All-time total
1,578,584
#3 all-time among girls
First recorded
1884
in Social Security records

Patricia popularity over time

1,578,584 babies have been named Patricia since 1884, 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
1020304018801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 58 – 58 6 – #635
1890s 330 – 330 33 +469% #389
1900s 1,336 – 1,336 134 +305% #234
1910s 9,707 19 9,726 973 +628% #114
1920s 74,732 208 74,940 7,494 +671% #10
1930s 220,582 788 221,370 22,137 +195% #3
1940s 411,412 1,242 412,654 41,265 +86% #3
1950s 459,681 1,021 460,702 46,070 +12% #3
1960s 231,178 726 231,904 23,190 -50% #5
1970s 81,111 438 81,549 8,155 -65% #24
1980s 45,127 374 45,501 4,550 -44% #51
1990s 24,118 130 24,248 2,425 -47% #97
2000s 9,320 15 9,335 934 -62% #226
2010s 3,731 – 3,731 373 -60% #617
2020s (to 2025) 1,200 – 1,200 200 -46% #1,116

Where Patricia 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 157 0.10 outside top 500
2027 150 0.09 outside top 500
2028 143 0.09 outside top 500
2029 138 0.09 outside top 500
2030 134 0.08 outside top 500

Where Patricia is most popular

Girls named Patricia per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.121 per 1,000. Strongest in Mississippi, Arizona, and Virginia.

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 Patricia 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
Mississippi 11 0.235 +94%
Arizona 30 0.214 +76%
Virginia 30 0.176 +45%
California 131 0.156 +29%
Florida 66 0.154 +27%
Washington 22 0.152 +26%
New York 54 0.136 +13%
North Carolina 31 0.136 +12%
Indiana 19 0.135 +12%
Illinois 30 0.131 +8%
Nevada 6 0.129 +7%
Texas 103 0.128 +6%
Ohio 29 0.122 ≈ national
Michigan 22 0.121 ≈ national
Massachusetts 13 0.108 -11%
Pennsylvania 24 0.102 -16%
Georgia 23 0.101 -16%
Tennessee 16 0.101 -17%
Colorado 11 0.099 -19%
New Jersey 17 0.094 -22%
Wisconsin 7 0.068 -44%
Missouri 8 0.066 -45%
Alabama 6 0.064 -47%
Minnesota 6 0.056 -54%
Maryland 5 0.047 -61%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
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 Patricia

Patricia is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,336 in 2025 with 167 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1884, 1,578,584 American babies have been named Patricia. Its peak came in 1951, when 56,574 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 Patricia stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Patricia?

The median living Patricia is about 70 years old; half are between 62 and 77. An estimated 1.1 million people named Patricia are alive in the United States today.

median 70 020406080100

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

Patricia 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 167 #1,336 – –
2024 179 #1,295 – –
2023 203 #1,182 – –
2022 222 #1,116 – –
2021 212 #1,157 – –
2020 217 #1,117 – –
2019 281 #942 – –
2018 299 #900 – –
2017 308 #884 – –
2016 387 #736 – –
2015 351 #802 – –
2014 380 #738 – –
2013 419 #677 – –
2012 396 #712 – –
2011 431 #659 – –
2010 479 #617 – –
2009 565 #535 – –
2008 630 #499 – –
2007 728 #443 – –
2006 776 #411 5 #13,498
2005 880 #356 – –
2004 998 #317 – –
2003 1,011 #307 5 #12,260
2002 1,115 #281 – –
2001 1,224 #261 – –
2000 1,393 #226 5 #11,691
1995 2,161 #150 8 #6,821
1990 3,579 #97 39 #1,960
1985 4,402 #64 35 #1,753
1980 5,310 #51 39 #1,562
1975 7,053 #36 29 #1,743
1970 13,406 #24 71 #956
1965 23,552 #6 64 #928
1960 32,113 #7 70 #908
1955 46,226 #6 91 #765
1950 47,944 #3 84 #752
1945 35,844 #4 99 #608
1940 32,665 #3 140 #493
1935 22,879 #5 86 #637
1930 15,751 #7 52 #939
1925 8,096 #28 23 #1,618
1920 2,502 #104 7 #3,737
1915 895 #189 – –
1910 316 #206 – –
1905 121 #307 – –
1900 87 #362 – –
1895 35 #498 – –
1890 11 #864 – –
1885 5 #1,164 – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Patricia

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

  1. 1 Patricia Arquette Patricia Arquette American actress (born 1968) Contemporary
  2. 2 Patricia Heaton Patricia Heaton American actress (born 1958) Contemporary
  3. 3 Patricia Routledge Patricia Routledge English actress and singer (1929–2025) Contemporary
  4. 4 Patricia Clarkson Patricia Clarkson American actress (born 1959) Contemporary
  5. 5 Patricia Neal Patricia Neal American stage and film actress (1926–2010) Contemporary
  6. 6 Patricia Cornwell Patricia Cornwell American crime writer (born 1956) Contemporary
  7. 7 Patricia Kennedy Lawford Patricia Kennedy Lawford American socialite (1924–2006) Contemporary
  8. 8 Patricia Velásquez Patricia Velásquez Venezuelan actress, model, and humanitarian advocate b. 1971 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Patricia Highsmith Patricia Highsmith American novelist (1921–1995) Contemporary
  10. 10 Patricia Wettig Patricia Wettig American actress (born 1951) Contemporary
  11. 11 Patricia Janečková Patricia Janečková Slovak singer (1998–2023) Contemporary
  12. 12 Patricia Belcher American actress b. 1954 · Contemporary
  13. 13 Patricia Blair Patricia Blair American TV and film actress (1933–2013) Contemporary
  14. 14 Patricia Barry Patricia Barry American actress (1922–2016) 1921–2016 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Patricia Kalember American actress b. 1956 · Contemporary
  16. 16 Patricia Tallman Patricia Tallman American actress and stunt performer b. 1957 · Contemporary
  17. 17 Patricia McPherson Patricia McPherson American actor b. 1954 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Patricia Kaas Patricia Kaas French singer (born 1966) Contemporary
  19. 19 Patricia Morison Patricia Morison American stage, television and film actress (1915–2018) Contemporary
  20. 20 Patricia Tarabini Patricia Tarabini Argentine tennis player and coach (born 1968) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Patricia?

The median living Patricia is about 70 years old. Half of all living Patricias are between 62 and 77 years old.

How many people named Patricia are alive today?

An estimated 1.1 million people named Patricia are alive in the United States, based on 1,578,584 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Patricia mean?

From Latin patricia (“noble”); later also seen as the feminine form of the saint's name Patrick.

How popular is the name Patricia in 2025?

Patricia ranked #1,336 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 167 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Patricia?

1,578,584 babies have been named Patricia in the United States since 1884, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Patricia most popular?

Patricia peaked in 1951, when 56,574 newborns received the name.

Is Patricia a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Patricia rising or falling?

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

Will Patricia become more popular?

Patricia is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 134 girls named Patricia 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 Patricia?

Well-known people named Patricia include Patricia Arquette (actor), Patricia Heaton (actor), Patricia Routledge (actor).

Names like Patricia

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

Compare Patricia with similar names → More names starting with P →