Ebba
Feminine · “wild boar”
Ebba is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 925 girls against 28 boys since 1880.
Ebba has two homes in northern Europe. In Sweden and Denmark it is a feminine of Ebbe, from a Germanic word for a wild boar; in early England it belonged to a seventh-century Northumbrian princess who founded a monastery on a headland that still carries her name. Both are old, and they are probably related.
How old is the name Ebba?
Ebba first appears in US birth records in 1888 — 137 years ago. The typical Ebba alive today was born around 1917, making them about 108 years old. About 300 people named Ebba are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Ebba most popular?
Ebba peaked in 1888, reaching #593 nationally. Today it ranks #4987, 4,394 places below that high. See the whole 1888 chart.
Where it comes from
From Ebur to Ebba
The story of Ebba
Aebbe was the daughter of a king of Northumbria and founded a double monastery at the headland now called St Abb's Head on the Scottish border; her name survives in that place and in the medieval calendar. Separately and probably relatedly, Ebba has been a Scandinavian name since the Middle Ages, borne by noblewomen in Sweden and Denmark, and it has been one of the most-given Swedish girls' names in the last two decades. American records carry it from Scandinavian immigration.
Meaningscholars disagree
wild boar, on the Scandinavian reading
The Scandinavian Ebba is generally read as a feminine of Ebbe, itself a short form of names built on Germanic ebur, a wild boar, which was a symbol of courage in northern Europe. The Old English Aebbe is a short form of an unrecoverable longer name and may or may not share that root. Neither can be shown.
How the name formed
- Ebur
- Ebbe
- Ebba
Related forms: Ebba · Ebba · Ebba · Ebbe
Pronouncing Ebba
EB-uh
Two syllables, stress in front, the double b held slightly in Swedish. English speakers say it correctly without being told.
Nicknames for Ebba
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
- 1888
- Most girls named
- 189826 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #593reached in 1888
- Change vs 2024
- +73.3%26 in 2025, from 15
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.
Ebba in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Ebba in Swedish — same name
- Ebba in Danish — same name
- Ebba in German — same name
- Ebbe in English — related form
Ebbas among us
people named Ebba are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 61,818 born in 2025 was named Ebba
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Ebba 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 Ebba is headed
Ebba should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low 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.
Ebba beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Ebba in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Four letters and two syllables: fast to write and impossible to mispronounce.
- It carries a documented seventh-century English figure and a Scandinavian noble tradition.
- It is currently very well used in Sweden, so it is contemporary rather than antique there.
- It is rare in the United States and will be spelled out often.
- Ebba and Abba are close enough in American speech to be confused.
- Its meaning is genuinely unsettled, so answers found online will disagree.
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Ebba
Feminine · #4987 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Ebbas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 300 people named Ebba are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Ebba in 2025?
- Ebba ranks #4987 among US girl names in 2025, with 26 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Ebba?
- About 1 in every 61,818 US girls born in 2025 was named Ebba — 26 in all.
- Will my child share the name Ebba with classmates?
- Ebba will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Ebba
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Perri#4987 · Giannina#4987 · Karisma#4987 · Zuleyka#4987 · Mccall#4987 · Makinley#4987 · Jayani#4987 · Mela#4987
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Ebba? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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