Geraldine
Masculine
Geraldine is given to girls far more often — 211,349 girls against 748 boys since 1880. See Geraldine as a girl name
Geraldine is recorded for boys and girls alike. For several years around the turn of the nineteen-seventies it was also the name of a character on American television who supplied the country with a phrase everybody repeated.
How old is the name Geraldine?
Geraldine first appears in US birth records in 1913 — 112 years ago. The typical Geraldine alive today was born around 1937, making them about 88 years old. About 200 people named Geraldine are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Geraldine most popular?
Geraldine peaked in 1941, reaching #1108 nationally. See the whole 1941 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Geraldine
Flip Wilson's Geraldine was a recurring character on a network variety show at the top of the ratings, and two of her lines entered general American speech: the one about the devil making her do it, and the one about what you see being what you get, which later became a technical term in computing by a route nobody planned. The character was performed by a man in a dress and was written, unusually for the period, as confident, sharp and entirely uninterested in apologizing, which is a large part of why she landed. The show was the first successful variety hour hosted by a Black performer on American network television.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The name was coined in a Tudor poem as a feminine of Gerald, whose Germanic elements are documented. Why the record holds it for boys as well is not explained anywhere.
Pronouncing Geraldine
JAIR-ul-deen
Three syllables with the stress in front and a soft g. The French form puts the weight at the end.
Nicknames for Geraldine
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
- 1913
- Most boys named
- 194135 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1108reached in 1941
- Change vs 1988
- −45.5%6 in 1989, from 11
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.
Geraldine in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Géraldine in French — same name
- Gearóidín in Irish — related form
Geraldines among us
people named Geraldine are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Geraldine sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Gerry is available as a short form and works for a child of either sex.
- It has a documented literary origin with a known author and century, which few names can claim.
- It is read correctly at first sight by nearly everybody.
- In America it reads as belonging to an older generation, which is either the appeal or the obstacle.
- This spelling goes overwhelmingly to girls but is recorded for boys as well, so a form will occasionally guess wrong.
- The soft g means it is occasionally written with a J by people working from sound.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Geraldine to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Geraldine? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Geraldine
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Geraldines are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Geraldine are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Geraldine in 2025?
- Geraldine is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Geraldine with classmates?
- Geraldine will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More G names
The most-given names starting with G, all years combined.
George#126 · Gary#1073 · Gregory#593 · Gerald#1204 · Gabriel#37 · Glenn#1443 · Gavin#303 · Gordon#1051
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Geraldine? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Geraldine and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
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
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle