America
Feminine · “work ruler”
America is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 13,522 girls against 16 boys since 1880.
America is named after a forename, not a surname — Amerigo Vespucci's, Latinized, and a German mapmaker's decision in 1507 that nobody ever undid.
How old is the name America?
America was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical America alive today was born around 2004, making them about 21 years old. About 12,000 people named America are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name America most popular?
America peaked in 2002, reaching #411 nationally. Today it ranks #1733, 1,322 places below that high. See the whole 2002 chart.
America appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From amal ric to America
The story of America
Waldseemüller wrote that he saw no reason the land should not be named for its discoverer, and printed America on a wall map in 1507; he had second thoughts and dropped it from a later edition, but the name had taken. America is used as a given name in Spanish-speaking countries and in the United States, and appears in the registers in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
work ruler, whole ruler
Through Amerigo, the Italian of the Germanic Emmerich — amal, 'work', or ermen, 'whole', joined to ric, 'ruler'. The first element is disputed. Martin Waldseemüller labeled the new southern continent America on his 1507 map, feminising Amerigo in the Latin manner.
How the name formed
- amal ric
- Emmerich
- Amerigo
- America
Related forms: América · Amerigo · Imre
Pronouncing America
uh-MER-ih-kuh
Four syllables, stress on the second. Spanish marks it América and says it the same way.
Nicknames for America
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 2007700 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #411reached in 2002
- Change vs 2022
- +31.5%117 in 2025, from 89
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
America in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- América in Spanish — same name
- Amerigo in Italian — related form
- Imre in Hungarian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Americas among us
people named America are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 13,737 born in 2025 was named America
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Denice test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. America's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Denice climbed just as high around 1954, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Denice's path sketches the road America is walking now.
America sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where America is headed
America should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
America beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to America in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Two continents carry the name, which no other given name can say.
- The 1507 map decision is unusually well documented.
- It is standard in Spanish-speaking naming without change.
- The national association is total and politically charged for some.
- The first Germanic element is genuinely disputed.
- Four syllables make it long for everyday use.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put America to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
America
Feminine · #1733 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Americas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 12,000 people named America are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name America in 2025?
- America ranks #1733 among US girl names in 2025, with 117 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name America?
- About 1 in every 13,737 US girls born in 2025 was named America — 117 in all.
- Will my child share the name America with classmates?
- America will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside America
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Josephina#1733 · Mei#1733 · Jaylin#1733 · Iva#1733 · Huda#1733 · Alany#1733 · Sarina#1733 · Chava#1733
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles America? See the current top 100.
Choosing between America and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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