Alma is a girl name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Alma means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Alma across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Alma has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Alma is a girl name of Latin origin meaning “nourishing, kind”. also a Spanish word for soul.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 165,942 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 1,903 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 90 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 525 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Alma per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1918 (3,702/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2025 (222/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1978 (27/yr) · Scotland peaked in 2025 (14/yr).
Alma has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1918, when it ranked #126 nationally (given to 3,702 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 1910s.
Wilma · Elma · Elmo · Aloma · Ulma · Wylma · Willma · Whilma
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