Effie
A feminine diminutive form of Euphemia, of Greek origin meaning "well-spoken".
Name Census estimates that about 5,793 living Americans carry the first name Effie. It is a predominantly female name (99.5% of registrations). The average person named Effie today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Effie births was 1919 (938 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Effie. 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 Effie is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 241 boys registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
5.8K
~ 1 in 59,167 Americans
Peak year
1919
938 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
1973 SSA rank
#2,507
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Effie
Out of the 44,412 babies given the name Effie since 1880, 99.5% 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.
Effie as a male name
- Ranked #4,208 in 1973
- 7 male births in 1973
- Peak: 1900 (13 births)
Effie as a female name
- Ranked #2,507 in 2024
- 71 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1919 (929 births)
Popularity
Effie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Effie from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 7,744 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Effie 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 Effie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Effies live
The SSA's state-level files cover 43 states and territories. North Carolina, Texas, Georgia recorded the most babies named Effie, while Connecticut, Arizona, Oregon recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 495 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Effie
The name Effie is a diminutive form of the Greek name Euphemia, which means "well-spoken" or "praise." It has its roots in the ancient Greek language and culture, dating back to the Byzantine era. The name Euphemia was derived from the Greek words "eu" meaning "well" and "pheme" meaning "speech" or "utterance."
Effie gained popularity as a given name during the Victorian era in the 19th century, particularly in English-speaking countries. It was often used as a nickname or diminutive form of longer names like Euphemia or Ephemia. The name had a certain charm and whimsical quality that appealed to the sensibilities of the time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Effie can be found in the novel "The Mill on the Floss" by George Eliot, published in 1860. In the book, Effie is the nickname of the character Euphemia Turbet.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Effie. One of the earliest was Effie Gray (1828-1897), a Scottish artist who was married to the famous art critic John Ruskin. Their turbulent marriage and eventual annulment due to non-consummation became a subject of public scandal in Victorian England.
Another prominent Effie was Effie Millais (1837-1898), the wife of the English painter John Everett Millais. She was a model and muse for her husband's works, including the iconic painting "Ophelia."
In the realm of literature, Effie Belle Caldwell (1864-1933) was an American writer and suffragette who published several novels and plays under the pen name of Effie W. Merriman.
The name also found its way into the world of entertainment. Effie Marie Fateaux (1905-1988), better known as Effie Fateaux, was an American vaudeville performer and actress who appeared in several films during the 1920s and 1930s.
Lastly, Effie Marquita Millais (1884-1964) was an English artist and writer, known for her memoir "The Life and Letters of John Everett Millais," which provided insights into the life of her father, the renowned Pre-Raphaelite painter.
People
Effie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Effie as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Effie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Effie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5,793 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Effie 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 59,167 US residents.
Is Effie a common name?
We classify Effie as "Rare". It ranks above 96.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 44,412 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Effie most popular?
The single biggest year for Effie was 1919, when 938 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Effie is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Effie a female name?
Yes, 99.5% of people registered as Effie 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.