How popular is the name Vanessa?

Vanessa ranks 175th among girls' names in US records, with 265,175 births since 1900. Over the past decade it accounts for 13,160.

Is Vanessa a unisex name?

No. Vanessa is recorded almost entirely as a girls' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.

1985, when 7,634 children were given the name. It has been in use for 125 years and is still recorded as of 2024.

Girl name#175 of girl names

Pronounced V AH0 N EH1 S AH0 (ARPABET)

Vanessa is a girls' name, and first appears in 1900. It has been given to 265,175 children — the 175th most common girls' name on record.

It is falling away, down 60% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1985, when 7,634 children were given it.

1985Girls: 7,634Boys: 42

Phonetic detail

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

How popular is the name Vanessa?: Vanessa ranks 175th among girls' names in US records, with 265,175 births since 1900. Over the past decade it accounts for 13,160.
Is Vanessa a unisex name?: No. Vanessa is recorded almost entirely as a girls' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Vanessa most popular?: 1985, when 7,634 children were given the name. It has been in use for 125 years and is still recorded as of 2024.