Agnes
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "pure" or "chaste".
Name Census estimates that about 19,829 living Americans carry the first name Agnes. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Agnes today is around 65 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Agnes births was 1918 (5,303 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Agnes. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Although Agnes is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 465 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1920s, recent registration numbers for Agnes have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
20K
~ 1 in 17,286 Americans
Peak year
1918
5,303 babies that year
Average age
65
years old
1949 SSA rank
#1,063
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Agnes
Out of the 159,735 babies given the name Agnes since 1880, 99.7% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Agnes as a male name
- Ranked #3,301 in 1949
- 6 male births in 1949
- Peak: 1921 (19 births)
Agnes as a female name
- Ranked #1,063 in 2024
- 233 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1918 (5,291 births)
Popularity
Agnes: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Agnes from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 39,362 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Agnes by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Agnes during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Agnes' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 50 states and territories. Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Agnes, while Wyoming, Utah, Idaho recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 2,323 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Agnes
The name Agnes is derived from the Greek word "hagnos" meaning "pure" or "sacred". It has its roots in ancient Greece, where it was used to refer to virtuous or chaste women.
Agnes became a popular name among early Christians, particularly in Rome. It is believed that the name gained widespread recognition after the martyrdom of St. Agnes, a young Roman girl who was executed for her Christian faith in the early 4th century.
The name Agnes first appeared in written records during the 4th century AD, when it was mentioned in the ancient Roman martyrologies. These early Christian texts recounted the life and martyrdom of St. Agnes, who is revered as a patron saint of young girls and virgins.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Agnes was Agnes of Rome, a Roman virgin and martyr who lived in the late 3rd and early 4th centuries. She is celebrated as a saint in the Catholic Church and is commemorated on January 21st.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Agnes became increasingly popular across Europe, particularly in regions with strong Christian traditions. Notable individuals with the name include Agnes of Poitiers (1025-1077), a French noblewoman and regent of the Duchy of Aquitaine, and Agnes of Merania (c. 1180-1201), a Queen consort of France.
During the Renaissance period, the name Agnes continued to be widely used. One of the most famous individuals with this name was Agnes Sorel (1422-1450), a French courtier and the chief mistress of King Charles VII of France.
In the 17th century, Agnes Sampson (c. 1590-1591) was a Scottish woman accused of witchcraft and executed during the North Berwick Witch Trials. Meanwhile, in the 18th century, Agnes Strickland (1796-1874) was an English historical writer and a prominent author of biographies of medieval queens.
The name Agnes has had a lasting legacy, transcending cultural and geographical boundaries. It has been used across various cultures, from European nations to regions as far as Asia and Africa, reflecting its enduring popularity as a name associated with purity and virtue.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Agnes
People
Agnes + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Agnes as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Agnes: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Agnes?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 19,829 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Agnes going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 17,286 US residents.
Is Agnes a common name?
We classify Agnes as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 159,735 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Agnes most popular?
The single biggest year for Agnes was 1918, when 5,303 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Agnes is about 65 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Agnes a female name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Agnes in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.