Polina
Feminine · “small”
Polina is the Russian and Bulgarian form of Paulina, and Paulina is Latin: small. It is among the steadier women's names across the Slavic world and has been for generations.
How old is the name Polina?
Polina first appears in US birth records in 1991 — 34 years ago. The typical Polina is a kid of about 11 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,300 people named Polina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Polina most popular?
Polina peaked in 2017, reaching #2432 nationally. Today it ranks #3249, 817 places below that high. See the whole 2017 chart.
Where it comes from
From Paulina to Polina
The story of Polina
Russian shortened long Greek and Latin names aggressively when it took them from Byzantium, and Apollinaria and Paulina both yield Polina by that process. The short form became a registered name in its own right and has been among the most-used Russian women's names for the past century. It reaches American records with families from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Greece.
Meaningscholars disagree
small, humble
The usual reading takes Polina from Paulina, the feminine of the Roman family name Paulus, meaning small. A second account derives it from Apollinaria, a name built on the god Apollo, which Russian also shortened this way; both routes are attested.
How the name formed
- Paulina
- Polina
Related forms: Полина · Paulina · Paolina · Polina
Pronouncing Polina
puh-LEE-nah
Three syllables with the stress in the middle. English speakers often say poh-LEE-nuh.
Nicknames for Polina
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
- 1991
- Most girls named
- 201774 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2432reached in 2017
- Change vs 2024
- 0.0%48 in 2025, from 48
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.
Polina in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Полина in Russian — transliteration
- Paulina in English — related form
- Paolina in Italian — related form
- Polina in Bulgarian — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, California, New York.
Polinas among us
people named Polina are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 33,485 born in 2025 was named Polina
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 Breyonna test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Polina's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Breyonna climbed just as high around 1994, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Breyonna's path sketches the road Polina is walking now.
Polina 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 Polina is headed
Polina 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.
Polina beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Polina in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Very widely used across Russia, Ukraine and Bulgaria, so it has a large community behind it.
- Lina and Polly are both ready short forms, in two languages.
- Open vowels make it readable in Russian, Spanish and Italian alike.
- Paulina and Pauline are more familiar in English and will be assumed by some.
- The first vowel is reduced in Russian and fuller in English.
- The two possible parent names mean the meaning question has a fork in it.
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What they receive
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Polina
Feminine · #3249 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Polinas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,300 people named Polina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Polina in 2025?
- Polina ranks #3249 among US girl names in 2025, with 48 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Polina?
- About 1 in every 33,485 US girls born in 2025 was named Polina — 48 in all.
- Will my child share the name Polina with classmates?
- Polina will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Polina
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Aisley#3249 · Quinley#3249 · Rosetta#3249 · Avalee#3249 · Unknown#3249 · Livi#3249 · Delina#3249 · Aniah#3249
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Polina? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Polina and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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