Fifi
A diminutive French pet form of the given name Josephine.
Name Census estimates that about 47 living Americans carry the first name Fifi. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Fifi today is around 58 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Fifi births was 1923 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Fifi. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Fifi with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Fifi. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
47
~ 1 in 7,292,645 Americans
Peak year
1923
10 babies that year
Average age
58
years old
1974 SSA rank
#5,904
Tracked since 1916
Census
Fifi in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 453 people with the first name Fifi, which placed it at #22,110 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#22,110
National first-name rank
People counted
453
453 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
36.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fifi
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Fifi is Black at 36.2%. The next largest groups are White (34.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (20.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Fifi described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Fifi at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American36.2% · 164
- White34.7% · 157
- Asian and Pacific Islander20.3% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 21
- Two or more races3.3% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 4
Popularity
Fifi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Fifi from the 1910s through to the 1970s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 51 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Fifi remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Fifi 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 Fifi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Fifi
The name Fifi is believed to have originated from the French language, derived from the diminutive form of the name Josephine. It first appeared in the late 18th century during the reign of the French monarchy.
The earliest recorded use of the name Fifi can be traced back to the aristocratic circles of France, where it was often used as a pet name or nickname for girls named Josephine. This was particularly popular among the upper classes, who often adopted French names and customs.
One of the earliest known historical references to the name Fifi is found in the writings of French author and playwright Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, who lived from 1732 to 1799. In his famous play "The Marriage of Figaro," one of the characters is named Fifi.
Throughout the 19th century, the name Fifi gained popularity in France and other parts of Europe, particularly among the upper classes and nobility. It was often associated with a sense of playfulness, charm, and sophistication.
One of the most notable historical figures with the name Fifi was Fifi d'Orsay (1904-1983), a French-American singer, actress, and vedette who was a popular entertainer during the mid-20th century. She was known for her glamorous lifestyle and high-profile relationships.
Another famous Fifi was Fifi Geldof (1933-2017), an American socialite and author who was a prominent figure in New York City's social scene during the 1960s and 1970s. She was known for her wit, charm, and unconventional lifestyle.
In the world of literature, the name Fifi was immortalized by French author Colette, who featured a character named Fifi in her 1920 novel "Cheri." The character embodied the carefree and sensual spirit often associated with the name.
Moving into the mid-20th century, Fifi Abdou (1953-present) is an Egyptian actress and singer who has appeared in numerous films and television shows throughout her career. She is considered one of the most famous and influential actresses in the Arab world.
Lastly, Fifi Geldof (1983-2014) was a British journalist, television presenter, and model who gained fame in the early 2000s. Tragically, she passed away at a young age, but her vibrant personality and sense of style left a lasting impression on the fashion and media industries.
People
Fifi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Fifi as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Fifi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Fifi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 47 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Fifi 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 7,292,645 US residents.
Is Fifi a common name?
We classify Fifi as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 141 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Fifi most popular?
The single biggest year for Fifi was 1923, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Fifi is about 58 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Fifi in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 453 people with the name Fifi, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,110 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Fifi in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Fifi?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Fifi leans strongly female. 430 people counted with this name were female (95.1%), compared with 22 male bearers (4.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Fifi?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Fifi is Black at 36.2%. The next largest groups are White (34.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (20.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Fifi most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Fifi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 36.2% (164 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Fifi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Fifi a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Fifi 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.
Is Fifi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Fifi in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Fifi can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people are named Fifi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.