Aretha is a girl name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Aretha means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Aretha across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Aretha has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Aretha is a girl name of Greek origin meaning “virtue, excellence”. A Greek name from the word for virtue.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 5,656 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 27 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 Aretha per year, United States (1900 to 2023). United States peaked in 1968 (543/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2002 (4/yr).
Aretha has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1968, when it ranked #715 nationally (given to 543 babies that year).
Eartha · Oretha · Arath · Artha · Ortha · Areatha · Aerith · Ertha
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