Margretta
Feminine · “A pearl”
Margretta is a name that has been shortened and then lengthened again, ending up almost exactly where it started — the middle vowel dropped in speech, and an Italian ending added to make up the difference.
How old is the name Margretta?
Margretta first appears in US birth records in 1885 — 140 years ago. The typical Margretta alive today was born around 1937, making them about 88 years old. About 300 people named Margretta are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Margretta most popular?
Margretta peaked in 1888, reaching #894 nationally. See the whole 1888 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Margaret to Margretta
The story of Margretta
Names oscillate. A long name is shortened in speech because speech always shortens; the shortened form is written down and becomes standard; then a later generation finds it too plain and adds an ending, producing something the same length as the original but built differently. Margaret, Margret, Margretta. The same cycle gave Elizabeth, Beth, Bethany, and Anne, Ann, Annette. What is being restored is not the name but the length — three syllables feel formal, two feel plain, and families reach for whichever they want without the slightest interest in what was there before.
Meaning
A pearl
The Greek word behind Margaret means a pearl and came to Greek from further east with the pearl trade. Neither the lost vowel nor the added ending changes that.
How the name formed
- Margaret
- Margret
- Margretta
Related forms: Margheritta · Margarete
Pronouncing Margretta
mar-GRET-uh
Three syllables with the stress in the middle. The doubled t keeps the vowel before it short.
Nicknames for Margretta
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
- 1885
- Most girls named
- 192122 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #894reached in 1888
- Change vs 1983
- 0.0%5 in 1989, from 5
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.
Margretta in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Margheritta in Italian — related form
- Margarete in German — related form
Margrettas among us
people named Margretta 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
Margretta 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
- The meaning is settled and the family behind it is one of Europe's great ones.
- It carries short forms that sound nothing like each other.
- It is read correctly on sight.
- Margaretta and Margarita are both nearby and hers will be written as one of them.
- The name is closely tied to one American era.
- The added ending brings length rather than meaning.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Margretta 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 Margretta? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Margretta
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Margrettas 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 Margretta are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Margretta in 2025?
- Margretta is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Margretta with classmates?
- Margretta will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More M names
The most-given names starting with M, all years combined.
Mary#125 · Margaret#112 · Michelle#465 · Melissa#419 · Maria#87 · Martha#712 · Marie#617 · Mildred#1962
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Margretta? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Margretta 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