Electra
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "shining" or "bright one".
Name Census estimates that about 882 living Americans carry the first name Electra. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Electra today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Electra births was 2006 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Electra. 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.
People living today
882
~ 1 in 388,610 Americans
Peak year
2006
34 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,068
Tracked since 1910
Popularity
Electra: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Electra from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 249 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Electra 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 Electra during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Electras live
Origin
Meaning and history of Electra
The name Electra has its origins in Greek mythology and literature. It comes from the Greek word "elektron," which means "amber" or "shining sun." The name is believed to have been derived from the Greek word "elektra," meaning "the bright one."
In Greek mythology, Electra was the daughter of Agamemnon, the king of Mycenae, and Clytemnestra. She played a significant role in the tragic story of the House of Atreus. After her father's murder by her mother and her mother's lover, Aegisthus, Electra helped her brother Orestes avenge their father's death.
The name Electra first appeared in ancient Greek literature, particularly in the works of the tragedians Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. In Sophocles' play "Electra," the character of Electra is portrayed as a strong and determined woman who seeks justice for her father's murder.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Electra can be found in the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BC. Herodotus mentioned a woman named Electra in his work "The Histories."
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Electra. One of the most famous was Electra, the daughter of the Roman Emperor Claudius and his third wife, Valeria Messalina. She lived from around 38 AD to 63 AD.
Another Electra of note was Electra, the wife of the Roman Emperor Theodosius I, who lived from around 363 AD to 408 AD. She was known for her piety and devotion to the Christian faith.
In the 16th century, the Italian Renaissance scholar and writer Battista Guarini wrote a pastoral tragicomedy titled "Il Pastor Fido," which featured a character named Electra.
In the 19th century, the German composer Richard Strauss wrote an opera titled "Elektra," based on the Greek tragedy by Sophocles. The opera premiered in 1909 and is considered one of Strauss's most significant works.
One of the most famous modern-day Electras was Electra Waggoner Biggs, an American socialite and heiress who lived from 1912 to 2000. She was known for her extravagant lifestyle and her marriage to the wealthy oilman and rancher W.T. Waggoner.
People
Electra + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Electra 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
Electra: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Electra?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 882 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Electra 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 388,610 US residents.
Is Electra a common name?
We classify Electra as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,134 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Electra most popular?
The single biggest year for Electra was 2006, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Electra is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Electra a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Electra 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.