Memory
Derived from the Latin "memoria", meaning recollection or remembrance of the past.
Name Census estimates that about 1,129 living Americans carry the first name Memory. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Memory today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Memory births was 2006 (36 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Memory. 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
1.1K
~ 1 in 303,591 Americans
Peak year
2006
36 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
1922 SSA rank
#4,151
Tracked since 1922
Census
Memory in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,099 people with the first name Memory, which placed it at #11,605 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
#11,605
National first-name rank
People counted
1.1K
1,099 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
59.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Memory
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Memory is White at 59.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.0%) and Hispanic (7.8%). 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 Memory 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 Memory at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.4% · 653
- Black or African American18.0% · 198
- Hispanic or Latino7.8% · 86
- Two or more races6.1% · 67
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.1% · 56
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.5% · 39
Gender
Gender distribution for Memory
Out of the 1,339 babies given the name Memory since 1880, 99.6% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Memory as a male name
- Ranked #4,151 in 1922
- 6 male births in 1922
- Peak: 1922 (6 births)
Memory as a female name
- Ranked #10,773 in 2024
- 9 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2006 (36 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Memory leans strongly female. 1,056 people counted with this name were female (96.0%), compared with 44 male bearers (4.0%).
Popularity
Memory: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Memory from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 205 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Memory remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Memory 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 Memory during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Memorys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Texas, Mississippi recorded the most babies named Memory, while Mississippi, Texas, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Memory
The given name Memory is a relatively modern name that emerged in the English language, likely inspired by the word "memory" itself, which traces its origins back to the Latin "memoria" and the Ancient Greek "mnēmē". This name was likely chosen as a symbolic representation of the concept of memory or as a way to honor someone's memory.
While not a traditional name with deep historical roots, Memory has gained some popularity in recent decades as a unique and meaningful choice for a first name. It is often given to children as a way to signify the importance of remembering and honoring the past, cherished moments, or loved ones who have passed away.
One of the earliest recorded instances of Memory being used as a first name can be found in the 1901 novel "The Millionaire Baby" by Anne Dill. In the book, a character named Memory Pemberton plays a significant role, suggesting that the name was already in use, albeit uncommon, at the turn of the 20th century.
Throughout the 20th century, several notable individuals have borne the first name Memory. One example is Memory Elvin-Lewis, an American ethnobotanist and author who was born in 1929 and made significant contributions to the study of traditional plant-based remedies.
Another notable Memory is Memory Ngwdziwa, a Zimbabwean politician and member of the House of Assembly, who served in various government roles from the 1980s to the early 2000s.
In the world of literature, Memory Harker is a character in the novel "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation" by M.T. Anderson, published in 2006. The inclusion of this name in a work of fiction further illustrates its recognition and use in modern times.
Memory Machiri is a Namibian athlete and sprinter who competed in the Olympic Games in 2012 and 2016, representing her country in various track and field events.
Finally, Memory Ndini is a South African actress and television presenter, known for her roles in various local productions, including the popular soap opera "Scandal!" which aired in the late 2000s and early 2010s.
While not a name with ancient roots or a long historical legacy, Memory has carved out a unique place in modern name-giving traditions, serving as a meaningful and symbolic choice for parents seeking a name that represents the importance of memory and remembrance.
People
Memory + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Memory as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Memory: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Memory?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,129 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Memory 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 303,591 US residents.
Is Memory a common name?
We classify Memory as "Rare". It ranks above 90.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,339 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Memory most popular?
The single biggest year for Memory was 2006, when 36 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Memory is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Memory in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,099 people with the name Memory, or 0.36 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,605 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 Memory 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 Memory?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Memory leans strongly female. 1,056 people counted with this name were female (96.0%), compared with 44 male bearers (4.0%). 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 Memory?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Memory is White at 59.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.0%) and Hispanic (7.8%). 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 Memory most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Memory in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.4% (653 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 Memory in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Memory a female name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Memory 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 Memory still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Memory 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 Memory 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 have Memory as a first name?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Memory, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.