Barbara is a girl name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Barbara means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Barbara across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Barbara has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Barbara is a girl name of Greek origin meaning “foreign woman”. originally denoting a non-Greek speaker.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 1,440,831 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 648 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 689 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 3,087 births |
| New Zealand top 100, since 1954 | 3,531 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 Barbara per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1947 (48,889/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1971 (172/yr) · Scotland peaked in 1974 (75/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2018 (42/yr).
Barbara has been one of the most popular baby names in the United States. It was most common in 1947, when it ranked #11 nationally (given to 48,889 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 1940s.
Barbra · Barabara · Barbera · Barbar · Barbro · Barabra · Barber · Barbaraa
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