ninan.org

Cynthia

Girls' name · Mid-century

Living in the US
~608,100 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#1,013 among girls
Births in 2025
247 713,412 since 1880
Typical age
64 years, median

Cynthia popularity over time

Cynthia rank by birth year, 1880–2025Cynthia ranked #197 in 1880 and #1,013 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #7, in 1957.#10#100#1,000#1,013best #7 in 195718901920195019802010
Rank among US baby names by birth year, 1880–2025. Lower is more popular; the scale is logarithmic so the top of the chart is not compressed.

The high point was 1957: 39,416 births recorded as Cynthia. The name is already in use in 1880, where the data begins. Cynthia has spent 49 years inside the national top 100.

The 2025 position is #1,013, on 247 births. The ten-year change is -57%. Year on year the rank dropped by 184.

Babies named Cynthia per yearPeaks at 39,416 births in 1957.39,416 in 1957018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Cynthia?

About 608,100 people named Cynthia are alive in the United States today. SSA has recorded 713,412 births under the name since 1880.

This is a survival-weighted estimate, not a headcount: every recorded birth year is multiplied by the chance someone born that year is still alive, using the SSA period life table. How the estimate works.

How old is the average Cynthia?

Median age among living Cynthias: 64. Most living bearers were born in the 1950s. By the site’s era rules that makes Cynthia a mid-century name.

Your Cynthia

Ages of living people named CynthiaHalf of living Cynthias are older than 64 and half younger.median 64020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Cynthia is most common

Relative to births, California carries 1.7× the national share of Cynthias. Kentucky, Wisconsin and New York follow.

Where Cynthia is used more than average5 states use the name Cynthia more than the national average.Alaska: not over-representedAKMaine: not over-representedMEVermont: not over-representedVTNew Hampshire: not over-representedNHWashington: not over-representedWAIdaho: not over-representedIDMontana: not over-representedMTNorth Dakota: not over-representedNDMinnesota: not over-representedMNIllinois: not over-representedILWisconsin: 1.4× the national rateWIMichigan: not over-representedMINew York: 1.4× the national rateNYOregon: not over-representedORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: not over-representedWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: not over-representedIAIndiana: 1.4× the national rateINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: not over-representedPANew Jersey: not over-representedNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: 1.7× the national rateCAUtah: not over-representedUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: 1.6× the national rateKYWest Virginia: not over-representedWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: not over-representedMAArizona: not over-representedAZNew Mexico: not over-representedNMKansas: not over-representedKSArkansas: not over-representedARTennessee: not over-representedTNNorth Carolina: not over-representedNCSouth Carolina: not over-representedSCDistrict of Columbia: not over-representedDCOklahoma: not over-representedOKLouisiana: not over-representedLAMississippi: not over-representedMSAlabama: not over-representedALGeorgia: not over-representedGAHawaii: not over-representedHITexas: not over-representedTXFlorida: not over-representedFL
Same as national3× or more
Location quotient, 2016–2025. Shaded states use the name more than the country does, relative to their own births. Exact figures are in the table below.
States where Cynthia is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
California 666 1.7×
Kentucky 63 1.6×
Wisconsin 70 1.4×
New York 261 1.4×
Indiana 92 1.4×

Cynthia in England and Wales

ONS recorded 13 births named Cynthia in 2025, ranking it #2,138. That is 32% lower than five years earlier.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts below three are suppressed by ONS.

Where the name Cynthia comes from

Borrowed from Latin Cynthia, from Ancient Greek Κυνθία, feminine of Κύνθιος (“Cynthian (of or pertaining to Mount Cynthus, a mountain of Delos, celebrated as the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis)”).

Etymology summarised from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wiktionary entry.

Notable people named Cynthia

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Cynthia Nixon American actress and politician 1966 50
Cynthia Erivo British actress and singer-songwriter 1987 47
Cynthia Lennon former wife of John Lennon 1939–2015 42
Cynthia Watros American actress 1968 33
Cynthia Rothrock American actress and martial artist 1957 33
Cynthia McKinney American politician and activist 1955 31
Cynthia Lummis American politician 1954 30
Cynthia Ozick American writer 1928 25
Photo credits (6)

The sharpest rise. Births under this name jumped from 3,139 in 1945 to 6,914 in 1946 — 2.2 times over in a single year.

Birth records contain the rise and nothing about its cause. This site does not supply one.

People and dates from Wikidata (CC0), limited to those with an English Wikipedia article who are known by this name as their first name.

Related pages

Get this data

Every number on this page is available as JSON: /api/name/cynthia.json. Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0).