Girl · #6,650 in 2026

Monika

Name: Popularity of the name Monika in U.S. births, 1880–2026
Creator: U.S. Social Security Administration
License: https://www.ssa.gov/foia/
Keywords: Monika, baby name, popularity, U.S., SSA, rankings

Monika is a female name in German, Scandinavian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Slovenian, Macedonian, Croatian, Estonian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Hungarian (Mónika) and Japanese which can also be seen in India. It is a variation of Monica, stemming from the word "advisor" in Latin and "unique" in Greek.

German
Swedish
Norwegian
Danish

Current Rank

#6,650

Peak Rank

#705 (1990)

Total Babies

10K

5-Yr Trend

-31%

1942

First Year

2026

Last Year

1990

Peak Year

#705

Peak Rank

10K

Total Count

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Monika

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

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

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

German
Swedish
Norwegian
Danish
Finnish
Estonian
Czech
Slovak
Polish
Slovene
Croatian
Bulgarian
Macedonian
Lithuanian
Latvian
Hungarian

The Story of Monika

Monika first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1942, with 5 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1990: 257 births, good for #783 nationwide. About 23% of every Monika on record arrived during the 1990s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Monika ranks #6,650 for baby girls with 17 births, falling sharply (-31%). All told, over 10K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1940s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Variants & Related Forms of Monika

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

Mona
Monica
Moonika

Notable people named Monika

A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.

Monika Äijä (born 1963), Swedish alpine skier
Monika Absolonová (born 1976), Czech singer and actress
Monika Adamczyk-Garbowska , Polish literature expert and professor of humanistic studies
Monika Aidelsburger , German quantum physicist
Monika Antonelli (born 1959), American voice actor and librarian
Monika Athare (born 1992), Indian long-distance runner
Monika Auer (born 1957), Italian luger
Monika Babok (born 1991), Croatian swimmer

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

Names that sound like Monika

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

Monica
Manica
Manaka
Monaco
Manuka
Muneca
Moniker
Mancha
Monic
Monicker
Meineke
Monaca

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Monika

What does the name Monika mean?

What is the origin of the name Monika?

Monika has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Estonian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Hungarian.

How popular is Monika in 2026?

In 2026, Monika ranks #6,650 among girls' names in the U.S., with 17 babies given the name that year.

When was Monika most popular?

Monika reached its peak popularity in 1990, ranking #705 that year with 257 babies given the name.

In which U.S. states is Monika most popular?

Monika has historically been most popular in Nevada, Connecticut, Illinois. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Monika.

Is Monika a unisex name?

In U.S. Social Security records, Monika is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.

What names go well with Monika?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Monika include Ardella, Joycelyn, Dori. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

What are nicknames or variants of Monika?

Common variants and related forms of Monika include Mona, Monica, Moonika. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

About the name Monika

Monika is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1942 and has accumulated 10K births in the dataset. Monika's peak popularity came in 1990 when it ranked #705. Use the chart and map above to compare Monika'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.