ninan.org

Theresa

Girls' name · Late 20th-century perennial

Living in the US
~273,300 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#1,548 among girls
Births in 2025
136 405,831 since 1880
Typical age
63 years, median

Theresa popularity over time

Theresa rank by birth year, 1880–2025Theresa ranked #112 in 1880 and #1,548 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #32, in 1956.#100#1,000#1,548best #32 in 195618901920195019802010
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.

Theresa was used most in 1961, when 11,991 babies were given the name. The name is already in use in 1880, where the data begins. Theresa has spent 69 years inside the national top 100.

The 2025 position is #1,548, on 136 births. Over ten years the count has fallen 35%. It slipped 56 places against the previous year.

Babies named Theresa per yearPeaks at 11,991 births in 1961.11,991 in 1961018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Theresa?

About 273,300 people named Theresa are alive in the United States today. SSA has recorded 405,831 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 Theresa?

Median age among living Theresas: 63. More of them were born in the 1960s than in any other decade. By the site’s era rules that makes Theresa a late 20th-century perennial name.

Your Theresa

Ages of living people named TheresaHalf of living Theresas are older than 63 and half younger.median 63020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Theresa is most common

Relative to births, Massachusetts carries 2.6× the national share of Theresas. Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey follow.

Where Theresa is used more than average5 states use the name Theresa 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: not over-representedWIMichigan: 1.3× the national rateMINew York: 1.7× the national rateNYOregon: not over-representedORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: not over-representedWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: not over-representedIAIndiana: not over-representedINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: 2.1× the national ratePANew Jersey: 1.5× the national rateNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: not over-representedCAUtah: not over-representedUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: not over-representedKYWest Virginia: not over-representedWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: 2.6× the national rateMAArizona: 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 Theresa is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
Massachusetts 66 2.6×
Pennsylvania 108 2.1×
New York 147 1.7×
New Jersey 56 1.5×
Michigan 54 1.3×

Theresa in England and Wales

In England and Wales, Theresa ranked #1,454 in 2025 on 21 births. That is 62% higher 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 Theresa comes from

First used in Spain, supposedly derived from Latin Thēra, from Ancient Greek Θήρᾱ, name of a city in Santorini, Greece.

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

Notable people named Theresa

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Theresa May Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2016 to 2019 1956 147
Theresa Russell American actress 1957 40
Theresa Randle American actress 1964 22
Theresa Villiers British politician 1968 21
Theresa Setefano New Zealand rugby union player 1995 19
Theresa Saldana American actress 1954–2016 18
Theresa Weld American figure skater 1893–1978 18
Theresa Zabell Spanish yacht racer 1965 18
Photo credits (7)

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

Names similar to Theresa

Matched by sound and spelling inside this dataset, then ordered by total recorded births. This is not a claim about shared etymology.

Related pages

Get this data

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