Sedona
Feminine
Sedona is an Arizona town named for one woman — Sedona Schnebly, whose husband applied for the post office in 1902 and used his wife's name because it was short enough to fit.
How old is the name Sedona?
Sedona first appears in US birth records in 1987 — 38 years ago. The typical Sedona alive today was born around 2011, making them about 14 years old. About 2,400 people named Sedona are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Sedona most popular?
Sedona peaked in 2025, reaching #1587 nationally. Today it ranks #1587, exactly where it peaked. See the whole 2025 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Sedona
T. C. Schnebly applied to open a post office in the Oak Creek settlement in 1902; his first two suggested names were rejected as too long for a cancellation stamp, and the postmaster general took his wife's instead. The red rock country made the town famous, and American families began using Sedona as a given name from the 1990s.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No etymology. Sedona Arabella Miller Schnebly was born in Missouri in 1877, and her mother is said to have made the name up because she thought it pretty. It is not from Spanish, Italian or any indigenous language, despite frequent claims. The town was named for her in 1902.
Pronouncing Sedona
sih-DOH-nuh
Three syllables, stress in the middle. Said identically in Arizona and elsewhere.
Nicknames for Sedona
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
- 1987
- Most girls named
- 2025132 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1587reached in 2025
- Change vs 2024
- +10.9%132 in 2025, from 119
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.
Sedona in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Sedonna in English — spelling variant
- Sedonia in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: Arizona, California, Texas.
Sedonas among us
people named Sedona are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 12,176 born in 2025 was named Sedona
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 Lyndsie test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Sedona's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Lyndsie climbed just as high around 1989, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Lyndsie's path sketches the road Sedona is walking now.
Sedona is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Sedona is headed
Sedona 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.
Sedona beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Sedona in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Its origin is unusually well documented — a real woman, a real year, a real post office.
- The red rock country gives it a strong and specific visual association.
- Three syllables with a strong middle, a rhythm that carries well.
- There is no inherited meaning; the name was invented by one woman's mother.
- Frequent claims of a Spanish or indigenous origin are simply wrong.
- The place association is total.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Sedona
Feminine · #1587 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Sedonas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,400 people named Sedona are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Sedona in 2025?
- Sedona ranks #1587 among US girl names in 2025, with 132 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Sedona?
- About 1 in every 12,176 US girls born in 2025 was named Sedona — 132 in all.
- Will my child share the name Sedona with classmates?
- Sedona will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Sedona
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Perla#1587 · Koa#1587 · Lidia#1587 · Kinsleigh#1587 · Calista#1592 · Journie#1592 · Aislinn#1592 · Ever#1592
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Sedona? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Sedona and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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