girls' name ★ peaked 1953

Roberta

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #2,809 Trend ↑ Rising 23%

A female given name from the Germanic languages, masculine equivalent Robert.

Rank 2025
#2,809
among girls · ↓42 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
61
named Roberta · -2% vs 2024
How common
1 in 26,349
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1953
4,310 babies
All-time total
172,330
#230 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Roberta popularity over time

172,330 babies have been named Roberta 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 541 – 541 54 – #243
1890s 1,120 – 1,120 112 +107% #234
1900s 2,372 – 2,372 237 +112% #171
1910s 10,370 38 10,408 1,041 +339% #142
1920s 18,219 106 18,325 1,833 +76% #122
1930s 27,731 150 27,881 2,788 +52% #64
1940s 38,051 152 38,203 3,820 +37% #66
1950s 37,916 111 38,027 3,803 0% #88
1960s 21,101 98 21,199 2,120 -44% #149
1970s 8,094 58 8,152 815 -62% #228
1980s 3,281 60 3,341 334 -59% #444
1990s 1,299 9 1,308 131 -61% #942
2000s 548 – 548 55 -58% #2,282
2010s 564 – 564 56 +3% #2,678
2020s (to 2025) 341 – 341 57 +1% #2,680

Where Roberta 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 63 0.04 outside top 500
2027 64 0.04 outside top 500
2028 66 0.04 outside top 500
2029 67 0.04 outside top 500
2030 68 0.04 outside top 500

Where Roberta is most popular

Girls named Roberta per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.037 per 1,000. Strongest in Texas, California, and Arizona.

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 Roberta 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
Texas 106 0.132 +256%
California 30 0.036 ≈ national
Arizona 5 0.036 ≈ national
New York 6 0.015 -59%
Florida 5 0.012 -68%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Illinois – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Pennsylvania – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
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 Roberta

Roberta is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #2,809 in 2025 with 61 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 172,330 American babies have been named Roberta. Its peak came in 1953, when 4,310 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 Roberta stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Roberta?

The median living Roberta is about 71 years old; half are between 62 and 79. An estimated 97 thousand people named Roberta are alive in the United States today.

median 71 020406080100

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

Roberta 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 61 #2,809 – –
2024 62 #2,767 – –
2023 64 #2,729 – –
2022 65 #2,680 – –
2021 48 #3,331 – –
2020 41 #3,668 – –
2019 58 #2,885 – –
2018 58 #2,899 – –
2017 55 #3,009 – –
2016 61 #2,822 – –
2015 62 #2,840 – –
2014 66 #2,678 – –
2013 42 #3,689 – –
2012 57 #2,999 – –
2011 60 #2,901 – –
2010 45 #3,561 – –
2009 38 #4,085 – –
2008 42 #3,841 – –
2007 59 #3,022 – –
2006 66 #2,721 – –
2005 54 #2,999 – –
2004 46 #3,317 – –
2003 42 #3,455 – –
2002 64 #2,490 – –
2001 71 #2,282 – –
2000 66 #2,368 – –
1995 108 #1,481 – –
1990 202 #942 9 #5,720
1985 290 #642 7 #5,637
1980 481 #444 11 #3,794
1975 670 #332 7 #4,682
1970 1,375 #228 16 #2,380
1965 2,129 #167 10 #2,737
1960 2,843 #149 10 #2,835
1955 3,783 #113 17 #1,961
1950 3,630 #96 13 #2,182
1945 3,602 #75 18 #1,620
1940 3,431 #71 17 #1,730
1935 3,180 #77 21 #1,532
1930 1,952 #125 9 #2,971
1925 1,759 #147 12 #2,558
1920 1,636 #144 7 #3,756
1915 1,156 #161 5 #4,293
1910 433 #164 – –
1905 243 #196 – –
1900 199 #225 – –
1895 130 #242 – –
1890 91 #264 – –
1885 45 #302 – –
1880 34 #270 – –

Famous people named Roberta

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

  1. 1 Roberta Flack Roberta Flack American singer (1937–2025) Contemporary
  2. 2 Roberta Williams Roberta Williams American video game designer (born 1953) Contemporary
  3. 3 Roberta Bondar Roberta Bondar Canadian astronaut (born 1945) Contemporary
  4. 4 Roberta Vinci Roberta Vinci Italian tennis player (born 1983) Contemporary
  5. 5 Roberta Peters Roberta Peters American opera singer 1930–2017 · Contemporary
  6. 6 Roberta Pinotti Roberta Pinotti Italian politician (born 1961) Contemporary
  7. 7 Roberta Brunet Italian runner (born 1965) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Roberta?

The median living Roberta is about 71 years old. Half of all living Robertas are between 62 and 79 years old.

How many people named Roberta are alive today?

An estimated 97 thousand people named Roberta are alive in the United States, based on 172,330 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Roberta mean?

A female given name from the Germanic languages, masculine equivalent Robert.

How popular is the name Roberta in 2025?

Roberta ranked #2,809 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 61 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Roberta?

172,330 babies have been named Roberta in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Roberta most popular?

Roberta peaked in 1953, when 4,310 newborns received the name.

Is Roberta a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Roberta rising or falling?

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

Will Roberta become more popular?

Roberta is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 68 girls named Roberta 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 Roberta?

Well-known people named Roberta include Roberta Flack (singer), Roberta Williams (game designer), Roberta Bondar (astronaut).

Names like Roberta

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

Compare Roberta with similar names → More names starting with R →