Girl · #873 in 2026

Barbara

Barbara and Barbra are given names. They are the feminine form of the Greek word barbaros meaning "stranger" or "foreign". In Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition, Saint Barbara was imprisoned in a tower by her father. She was then martyred by her father when she refused to renounce Christianity. According to legend, her father was then punished with death by lightning.

  • English
  • Italian
  • French
  • German
Current Rank
#873
Peak Rank
#2 (1947)
Total Babies
1.4M
5-Yr Trend
+2%
1880
First Year
2026
Last Year
1947
Peak Year
#2
Peak Rank
1.4M
Total Count
147
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Barbara

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Barbara and Barbra are given names. They are the feminine form of the Greek word barbaros meaning "stranger" or "foreign". In Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition, Saint Barbara was imprisoned in a tower by her father. She was then martyred by her father when she refused to renounce Christianity. According to legend, her father was then punished with death by lightning.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • English
  • Italian
  • French
  • German
  • Polish
  • Hungarian
  • Slovene
  • Croatian
  • Dutch
  • Swedish
  • Danish
  • Norwegian
  • Ancient Roman
  • Portuguese
  • Spanish

The Story of Barbara

The earliest SSA record of Barbara as a baby girl name dates back to 1880, when 127 babies received it. 1947 was its biggest year on record, with 48,800 newborns named Barbara — #4 in the national rankings. About 30% of every Barbara on record arrived during the 1940s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Barbara ranks #873 for baby girls with 310 births, holding steady (+2%). All told, over 1.4M Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Variants & Related Forms of Barbara

Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Barbara. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Where is Barbara most common?

Predicted country distribution based on naming patterns globally.

  • United States
    38%
  • Italy
    26%
  • Poland
    18%
  • Brazil
    10%
  • Germany
    8%

Source: Nationalize.io . Probabilities are global naming-pattern estimates, not strict counts.

Names that sound like Barbara

Phonetically similar names — useful when Barbara is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Barbara

What does the name Barbara mean?
Barbara and Barbra are given names. They are the feminine form of the Greek word barbaros meaning "stranger" or "foreign". In Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition, Saint Barbara was imprisoned in a tower by her father. She was then martyred by her father when she refused to renounce Christianity. According to legend, her father was then punished with death by lightning.
What is the origin of the name Barbara?
Barbara has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: English, Italian, French, German, Polish, Hungarian, Slovene, Croatian, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Ancient Roman, Portuguese, Spanish.
How popular is Barbara in 2026?
In 2026, Barbara ranks #873 among girls' names in the U.S., with 310 babies given the name that year.
When was Barbara most popular?
Barbara reached its peak popularity in 1947, ranking #2 that year with 48,800 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Barbara most popular?
Barbara has historically been most popular in California, Delaware, Maine. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Barbara.
Is Barbara a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Barbara is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Barbara?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Barbara include Anna, Helen, Susan. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.
What are nicknames or variants of Barbara?
Common variants and related forms of Barbara include Babe, Babette, Babs, Bara, Barb, Barbe. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

Similar Names

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Susan
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Hannah
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About the name Barbara

Barbara is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 1.4M births in the dataset. Barbara's peak popularity came in 1947 when it ranked #2. Use the chart and map above to compare Barbara's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.