Loreto
A feminine Italian name derived from the Italian town of Loreto.
Name Census estimates that about 336 living Americans carry the first name Loreto. It is a predominantly male name (95.9% of registrations). The average person named Loreto today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Loreto births was 1924 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Loreto. 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
336
~ 1 in 1,020,102 Americans
Peak year
1924
15 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2023 SSA rank
#8,651
Tracked since 1915
Gender
Gender distribution for Loreto
Loreto leans heavily male at 95.9% of total registrations, but 21 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Loreto as a male name
- Ranked #8,651 in 2023
- 9 male births in 2023
- Peak: 1923 (14 births)
Loreto as a female name
- Ranked #16,620 in 2023
- 5 female births in 2023
- Peak: 1972 (6 births)
Popularity
Loreto: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Loreto from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 94 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Loreto 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 Loreto during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Loretos live
Origin
Meaning and history of Loreto
The name Loreto is of Italian origin and is believed to have derived from the Latin word "lauretum," which means "laurel grove." The laurel is a tree associated with victory, honor, and peace in ancient Roman culture.
The name is closely tied to the town of Loreto in Italy, which is home to the Basilica della Santa Casa, a revered Catholic shrine that houses the Holy House of the Virgin Mary, according to Catholic tradition. The town's name is thought to have come from the laurel trees that once grew in abundance in the area.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Loreto can be found in the 13th century, when it was used as a title for the Virgin Mary, particularly in reference to the Basilica della Santa Casa. The name gained popularity as a given name for both boys and girls in Italy during the Middle Ages, likely due to its connection to the Virgin Mary and the holy site.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Loreto. One of the earliest was Loreto Vittori (1532-1617), an Italian painter and architect who worked in Rome during the Renaissance. Another notable figure was Loreto Aprile (1610-1693), an Italian painter and engraver from Naples.
In the 19th century, Loreto Aprutino (1815-1899) was an Italian politician and patriot who fought for the unification of Italy. Loreto Vittori (1848-1931) was an Italian mathematician and engineer who made significant contributions to the field of algebraic geometry.
More recently, Loreto Sesma (1901-1976) was a Mexican actress and singer who appeared in numerous films during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Loreto Segura (1905-1982) was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as the governor of Michoacán from 1960 to 1966.
While the name Loreto has its roots in Italian culture and Catholic tradition, it has been used in various parts of the world, particularly among those of Italian descent or with connections to the Catholic faith.
People
Loreto + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Loreto 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
Loreto: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Loreto?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 336 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Loreto 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 1,020,102 US residents.
Is Loreto a common name?
We classify Loreto as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 515 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Loreto most popular?
The single biggest year for Loreto was 1924, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Loreto is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Loreto a male name?
Yes, 95.9% of people registered as Loreto in the SSA data are male. 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.