Baby name

Pamela

Girl

Origin of the name

Pamela was invented in the 16th century by the English poet Philip Sidney, then made popular by Samuel Richardson's novel Pamela.

Short-lived name

In 1954, Pamela reached its peak: 27,361 girls, 1 baby in 145. Since then, the name has fallen 99%, to about 100 births a year. In 2025, it ranked No. 2239. 40% of all babies named Pamela since 1880 were born in the 1950s.

595,076births since 1880

1950sgeneration

No. 12rank at its peak, in 1954

Where babies named Pamela are born

1954

Year shown on the map

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The darker the blue, the more common Pamela is in the state, compared with its births. White: no births published that year.

Where it is most popular

Compared with the national average, Pamela is most common in District of Columbia (1.7 times), Maine (1.5) and West Virginia (1.4), taking into account all births in each state since 1910.

One letter apart

Pamala 7,357
Tamela 7,186
Pamella 3,166
Pamelia 2,229

Names from the same era

Janet · Deborah · Debra · Diane · Christine · Catherine

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