Samantha is a girl name with a modern feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Samantha means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Samantha across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Samantha has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Samantha is a girl name of English origin meaning “of uncertain origin, possibly a feminine form of Samuel”. first recorded in the 18th century.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 594,052 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 12,685 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 7,666 births |
| Northern Ireland since 1997 | 359 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 3,485 births |
| New Zealand top 100, since 1954 | 7,549 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 Samantha per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1990 (25,926/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 1996 (1,854/yr) · Scotland peaked in 1991 (473/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1986 (206/yr) · Northern Ireland peaked in 1997 (42/yr).
Samantha has been one of the most popular baby names in the United States. It was most common in 1990, when it ranked #19 nationally (given to 26,441 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 1990s.
Sammantha · Samanthia · Samanatha · Smantha · Samanth · Symantha · Cymantha · Semantha
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