Girl · #2,296 in 2026

Pamela

Pamela is a feminine given name, often abbreviated to Pam. Pamela is also infrequently used as a surname.

Current Rank
#2,296
Peak Rank
#10 (1954)
Total Babies
595K
5-Yr Trend
-33%
1895
First Year
2026
Last Year
1954
Peak Year
#10
Peak Rank
595K
Total Count
121
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Pamela

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

Pamela is a feminine given name, often abbreviated to Pam. Pamela is also infrequently used as a surname.

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

Origin & history
Sir Philip Sidney invented the name Pamela for a pivotal character in his epic prose work, The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia , written in the late 16th century and published posthumously. The name is widely taken to mean "all sweetness", formed on the Greek words πᾶν pan ("all") and μέλι meli ("honey"), but there is no evidence regarding what meaning, if any, Sidney intended for it. The Samuel Richardson novel Pamela in 1740 or 1741 inaugurated the use of Pamela as a given name, though it remained a rare name. The name's popularity may have been hindered by the tendency to pronounce it / p ə

The Story of Pamela

Pamela first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1895, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1954, when 27,362 Pamelas were born — ranking #12 that year. As of 2026, Pamela ranks #2,296 for baby girls with 81 births, falling sharply (-33%). In total, more than 595K Pamelas have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1890s through 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

Names that sound like Pamela

Phonetically similar names — useful when Pamela 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 Pamela

What does the name Pamela mean?
Pamela is a feminine given name, often abbreviated to Pam. Pamela is also infrequently used as a surname.
How popular is Pamela in 2026?
In 2026, Pamela ranks #2,296 among girls' names in the U.S., with 81 babies given the name that year.
When was Pamela most popular?
Pamela reached its peak popularity in 1954, ranking #10 that year with 27,362 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Pamela most popular?
Pamela has historically been most popular in Indiana, Mississippi, Nevada. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Pamela.
Is Pamela a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Pamela is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Pamela?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Pamela include Laura, Lillian, Rebecca. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

Similar Names

👧
Laura
Peak #10
👧
Lillian
Peak #10
👧
Rebecca
Peak #10
👧
Carolyn
Peak #10
👧
Julie
Peak #10
👧
Luna
Peak #10
👧
Tracy
Peak #10
👧
Kelly
Peak #10

About the name Pamela

Pamela is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1895 and has accumulated 595K births in the dataset. Pamela's peak popularity came in 1954 when it ranked #10. Use the chart and map above to compare Pamela'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.