girls' name ★ peaked 2019

Willa

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #422 Trend ↓ Falling 12%

Derived from Wilhelmina and recoined in the 19th century in America based on the male given names Will and William.

Rank 2025
#422
among girls · ↑1 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
742
named Willa · +1% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,166
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2019
889 babies
All-time total
32,848
#792 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Willa popularity over time

32,848 babies have been named Willa 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 239 – 239 24 – #386
1890s 527 – 527 53 +121% #357
1900s 890 – 890 89 +69% #329
1910s 2,669 – 2,669 267 +200% #311
1920s 4,792 7 4,799 480 +80% #278
1930s 4,441 17 4,458 446 -7% #274
1940s 3,415 – 3,415 342 -23% #329
1950s 2,118 – 2,118 212 -38% #507
1960s 956 – 956 96 -55% #853
1970s 333 – 333 33 -65% #1,802
1980s 283 – 283 28 -15% #2,572
1990s 404 – 404 40 +43% #2,340
2000s 1,344 – 1,344 134 +233% #1,036
2010s 5,652 – 5,652 565 +321% #356
2020s (to 2025) 4,761 – 4,761 794 +40% #350

Where Willa 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 729 0.45 #428
2027 718 0.45 #432
2028 709 0.44 #437
2029 701 0.44 #440
2030 695 0.43 #445

Where Willa is most popular

Girls named Willa per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.478 per 1,000. Strongest in Montana, North Dakota, and Nebraska.

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 Willa 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
Montana 33 2.44 +410%
North Dakota 30 2.28 +378%
Nebraska 78 2.17 +354%
Iowa 95 1.63 +240%
Minnesota 164 1.52 +218%
South Dakota 21 1.47 +208%
Maine 22 1.42 +198%
New Hampshire 24 1.30 +172%
District of Columbia 15 1.27 +165%
Vermont 6 1.24 +159%
Wisconsin 125 1.21 +154%
Colorado 132 1.18 +148%
Mississippi 49 1.05 +119%
Oregon 68 1.04 +119%
Tennessee 156 0.985 +106%
West Virginia 25 0.954 +100%
Kentucky 80 0.935 +96%
Idaho 31 0.926 +94%
Washington 130 0.900 +88%
Alabama 79 0.841 +76%
Missouri 96 0.797 +67%
Oklahoma 56 0.761 +59%
Connecticut 43 0.739 +55%
Massachusetts 89 0.736 +54%
North Carolina 159 0.698 +46%
Utah 58 0.697 +46%
Arkansas 35 0.662 +39%
Pennsylvania 152 0.643 +35%
South Carolina 56 0.623 +30%
Kansas 34 0.589 +23%
Ohio 134 0.565 +18%
Michigan 102 0.560 +17%
Georgia 122 0.537 +12%
Indiana 75 0.534 +12%
New York 193 0.487 ≈ national
Illinois 111 0.485 ≈ national
Virginia 80 0.469 ≈ national
Maryland 46 0.434 -9%
Louisiana 30 0.343 -28%
Arizona 48 0.342 -28%
California 274 0.326 -32%
New Jersey 53 0.294 -39%
Texas 217 0.270 -43%
Florida 115 0.269 -44%
Nevada 9 0.194 -59%
Alaska – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
New Mexico – – –
Rhode Island – – –
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 Willa

Willa is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #422 in 2025 with 742 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 32,848 American babies have been named Willa. Its peak came in 2019, when 889 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

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

How old are people named Willa?

The median living Willa is about 12 years old; half are between 5 and 69. An estimated 19 thousand people named Willa are alive in the United States today.

median 12 020406080100

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

Willa 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 742 #422 – –
2024 733 #423 – –
2023 721 #430 – –
2022 791 #396 – –
2021 887 #351 – –
2020 887 #350 – –
2019 889 #356 – –
2018 813 #383 – –
2017 699 #454 – –
2016 689 #461 – –
2015 675 #481 – –
2014 562 #551 – –
2013 406 #697 – –
2012 389 #717 – –
2011 261 #984 – –
2010 269 #954 – –
2009 252 #1,036 – –
2008 247 #1,061 – –
2007 201 #1,238 – –
2006 116 #1,796 – –
2005 121 #1,656 – –
2004 99 #1,906 – –
2003 96 #1,914 – –
2002 97 #1,851 – –
2001 59 #2,599 – –
2000 56 #2,671 – –
1995 49 #2,587 – –
1990 27 #3,906 – –
1985 24 #3,618 – –
1980 24 #3,502 – –
1975 28 #2,742 – –
1970 50 #1,802 – –
1965 92 #1,096 – –
1960 149 #853 – –
1955 237 #601 – –
1950 256 #507 – –
1945 344 #380 – –
1940 375 #329 – –
1935 414 #298 – –
1930 512 #293 – –
1925 521 #296 – –
1920 424 #317 – –
1915 292 #347 – –
1910 134 #342 – –
1905 92 #349 – –
1900 84 #369 – –
1895 53 #390 – –
1890 51 #360 – –
1885 25 #427 – –
1880 12 #517 – –

Famous people named Willa

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

  1. 1 Willa Fitzgerald Willa Fitzgerald American actress (born 1991) Contemporary
  2. 2 Willa Holland Willa Holland American actress (born 1991) Contemporary
  3. 3 Willa Cather Willa Cather American writer (1873–1947) 19th century
  4. 4 Willa Ford Willa Ford American singer (born 1981) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Willa?

The median living Willa is about 12 years old. Half of all living Willas are between 5 and 69 years old.

How many people named Willa are alive today?

An estimated 19 thousand people named Willa are alive in the United States, based on 32,848 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Willa mean?

Derived from Wilhelmina and recoined in the 19th century in America based on the male given names Will and William.

How popular is the name Willa in 2025?

Willa ranked #422 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 742 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Willa?

32,848 babies have been named Willa in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Willa most popular?

Willa peaked in 2019, when 889 newborns received the name.

Is Willa a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Willa rising or falling?

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

Will Willa become more popular?

Willa is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 695 girls named Willa in 2030, which would rank around #445. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Willa?

Well-known people named Willa include Willa Fitzgerald (actor), Willa Holland (actor), Willa Cather (writer).

Names like Willa

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

Compare Willa with similar names → More names starting with W →