Larisa
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "cheerful" or "joyful".
Name Census estimates that about 3,227 living Americans carry the first name Larisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Larisa today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Larisa births was 1993 (108 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Larisa. 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
3.2K
~ 1 in 106,215 Americans
Peak year
1993
108 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,269
Tracked since 1951
Popularity
Larisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Larisa from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 814 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Larisa 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 Larisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Larisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Larisa, while Missouri, Minnesota, Virginia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 62 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Larisa
The name Larisa has its origins in the ancient Greek language. It is a feminine form of the Greek name Larisaios, which was derived from the city of Larisa, located in Thessaly, Greece. The name Larisa is believed to have been in use since the 5th century BC.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Larisa can be found in Greek mythology. According to legend, Larisa was the name of a nymph who was the daughter of Pelasgus, a mythical king of the Pelasgians, an ancient Greek tribe.
In ancient times, the city of Larisa was an important center of trade and culture, and the name was likely popular among the residents of the region. As the Greeks colonized other areas of the Mediterranean, the name spread to other parts of the ancient world.
One of the earliest known historical figures with the name Larisa was Larisa of Ephesus, a 4th-century BC Greek philosopher who was a student of Plato. Another notable figure was Larisa of Cyzicus, a 3rd-century BC Greek poet and grammarian.
During the Byzantine era, the name Larisa remained in use among Greek-speaking populations. One notable figure from this period was Larisa Palaiologina, a 14th-century Byzantine princess who was the daughter of the Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos.
In more recent times, the name Larisa has been popular in Russia and other Slavic countries, likely due to the influence of Greek culture and Orthodox Christianity. One famous Russian figure with the name was Larisa Shepitko (1938-1979), a celebrated film director and screenwriter.
Other notable individuals with the name Larisa include Larisa Latynina (1934-), a Soviet gymnast who won a record 18 Olympic medals; Larisa Dolina (1955-), a Russian singer and actress; and Larisa Peleshenko (1986-), a Russian long jumper and Olympic gold medalist.
People
Larisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Larisa as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Larisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Larisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,227 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Larisa 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 106,215 US residents.
Is Larisa a common name?
We classify Larisa as "Rare". It ranks above 95.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,444 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Larisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Larisa was 1993, when 108 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Larisa is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Larisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Larisa 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.