Liisa
Finnish variation of the Elizabeth, from Hebrew meaning "pledged to God".
Name Census estimates that about 359 living Americans carry the first name Liisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Liisa today is around 57 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Liisa births was 1962 (28 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Liisa. 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
359
~ 1 in 954,747 Americans
Peak year
1962
28 babies that year
Average age
57
years old
1995 SSA rank
#14,768
Tracked since 1949
Popularity
Liisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Liisa from the 1940s through to the 1990s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 173 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Liisa 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 Liisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Liisas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Liisa
The name Liisa is a Finnish variant of the name Elizabeth, which has its roots in the Hebrew name Elisheva, meaning "God is my oath." The earliest known use of the name Liisa dates back to the 13th century in Finland.
Liisa is derived from the Russian form of Elizabeth, Yelizaveta, which was adopted into Finnish as Elisabet or Elisabetta. Over time, this evolved into the more Finnish-sounding Liisa. The name was particularly popular among Finnish nobility and upper classes during the Swedish rule of Finland in the 16th to 18th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name Liisa was Liisa Antintytär, a Finnish noblewoman who lived in the late 16th century. She was known for her involvement in land disputes and legal battles over inheritance rights.
In the 17th century, Liisa Kaarlentytar Maununtytär was a prominent Finnish merchant and landowner. She played a significant role in the economic development of the city of Turku, which was then the capital of Finland.
Another notable Liisa was Liisa Cajander (1782-1856), a Finnish author and translator. She was one of the first Finnish women to publish literary works and played a vital role in the development of Finnish literature.
In the 20th century, Liisa Ihmemaailmassa (Liisa in Wonderland) was a Finnish translation of Lewis Carroll's classic novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" by Anni Swan, published in 1972. This translation helped popularize the name Liisa among Finnish readers.
Liisa Värelä (1912-1991) was a Finnish actress and singer who achieved widespread fame and recognition for her performances on stage, film, and radio. She was a beloved figure in Finnish cultural life and received numerous awards and honors throughout her career.
People
Liisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Liisa 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
Liisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Liisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 359 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Liisa 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 954,747 US residents.
Is Liisa a common name?
We classify Liisa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 427 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Liisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Liisa was 1962, when 28 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Liisa is about 57 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Liisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Liisa 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.