Penelope

Penelope was the #22 girls' name in the US in 2025 (6,225 babies), and #33 in England & Wales and #57 in Canada.

Penelope as a girl’s name

US
England & Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
Ireland
Canada
NSW
VIC

Babies per 1,000 of the same sex in each published list. New South Wales and Victoria publish their top 100 only, so they appear in the rank view and only in years the name made the top 100. Breaks in a line are years with too few babies to be published.

Show the numbers

Year	US	England & Wales	Scotland	Northern Ireland	Ireland	Canada	NSW	VIC
2025	#22 (6,225)	#33 (1,174)	#71 (58)	#111 (19)	#148 (31)	#57 (399)	#41 (153)	#43 (136)
2024	#28 (5,760)	#36 (1,133)	#81 (51)	#144 (14)	#156 (29)	#50 (421)	#40 (156)	#39 (140)
2023	#23 (6,068)	#33 (1,156)	#86 (50)	#99 (21)	#143 (33)	#65 (371)	#40 (149)	#41 (125)
2022	#21 (6,430)	#32 (1,206)	#83 (50)	#114 (19)	#157 (33)	#52 (436)	#45 (154)	#31 (148)
2021	#23 (6,370)	#38 (1,194)	#81 (54)	#116 (20)	#160 (30)	#61 (424)	#43 (165)	#46 (134)
2020	#26 (6,152)	#44 (1,020)	#109 (40)	#111 (19)	#178 (26)	#55 (437)	#47 (137)	#43 (134)
2019	#22 (6,734)	#41 (1,157)	#97 (45)	#107 (20)	#119 (46)	#56 (468)	#48 (131)	#55 (112)
2018	#26 (6,524)	#48 (1,068)	#87 (50)	#145 (15)	#159 (33)	#65 (391)	#47 (138)	#62 (84)
2017	#24 (6,668)	#55 (1,020)	#88 (50)	#134 (17)	#133 (43)	#62 (413)	#55 (114)	#48 (96)
2016	#27 (6,400)	#63 (972)	#131 (37)	#129 (17)	#228 (21)	#65 (396)	#52 (124)	#63 (82)
2015	#34 (5,953)	#69 (832)	#101 (46)	#248 (7)	#264 (19)	#63 (414)	#71 (96)	#80 (62)
2014	#43 (5,089)	#101 (575)	#212 (22)	#229 (8)	#242 (21)	#84 (329)	#87 (78)	#98 (54)
2013	#56 (4,292)	#130 (411)	#194 (23)	#370 (4)	#399 (11)	#94 (299)	#81 (85)	#100 (53)
2012	#125 (2,536)	#209 (240)	#321 (13)	#383 (4)	#560 (7)	#140 (222)	—	—
2011	#168 (1,871)	#255 (191)	#244 (18)	—	#393 (12)	#170 (189)	—	—

The tide so far

Peaked in the US in 2019 at #22.
Holding steady over the last five years.
In the US records since the data begins in 1880.

How common is it?

about 1 in 260 baby girls in the published US list for 2025.

In a group of 1,000 children born that year, you would expect to meet about 4. How we work this out.

How common, country by country

Where	Sex	Latest year	Share	Verdict
US	Girls	2025	about 1 in 260	common
England & Wales	Girls	2025	about 1 in 220	common
Scotland	Girls	2025	about 1 in 310	common
Northern Ireland	Girls	2025	about 1 in 380	common
Ireland	Girls	2025	about 1 in 680	common
Canada	Girls	2025	about 1 in 370	common

Next year

On its recent trend, Penelope is likely to hold steady in the US in 2026: about 1 in 270 baby girls. Likely range 1 in 250 to 1 in 290.

Estimate, not an official figure. How we estimate.

Across the US

Penelope (girls) rank in each state, 2025. Hatched states recorded fewer than 5 babies.

#1–10
#11–50
#51–100
#101–500
below #500

Across Canada

Province	Year	Rank	Babies
Ontario	2024	#42	185
Quebec	2025	#111	50

Penelope (girls): rank in each province’s latest list. Only Quebec and Ontario publish full name lists; Ontario’s latest list is a year behind.

Spellings

Official statistics count each spelling separately, so we show them side by side rather than adding them up.

Spelling	Where	Sex	Latest rank	Babies
Penelope	Canada	Girls	#57	399
Penelope	England & Wales	Girls	#33	1,174
Penelope	Ireland	Girls	#148	31
Penelope	Northern Ireland	Girls	#111	19
Penelope	NSW	Girls	#41	153
Penelope	Scotland	Girls	#71	58
Penelope	US	Girls	#22	6,225
Penelope	US	Boys	—	too few
Penelope	VIC	Girls	#43	136