Pamella
Feminine form of the Latin name Pamela, possibly meaning "all honey" or "entirely sweet".
Name Census estimates that about 2,230 living Americans carry the first name Pamella. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Pamella today is around 64 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pamella births was 1954 (149 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pamella. 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
2.2K
~ 1 in 153,701 Americans
Peak year
1954
149 babies that year
Average age
64
years old
2015 SSA rank
#18,468
Tracked since 1928
Popularity
Pamella: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Pamella from the 1920s through to the 2010s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 1,254 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Pamella 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 Pamella during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Pamellas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 21 states and territories. California, Ohio, Illinois recorded the most babies named Pamella, while Oregon, New Jersey, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 54 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Pamella
The name Pamella is a variant of the feminine given name Pamela, which has its origins in the ancient Greek language. It is derived from the Greek word "pamelos," meaning "all honey" or "sweetened entirely." The name was likely originally a descriptive epithet referring to the sweetness or charm of the person bearing it.
During the Middle Ages, the name Pamella was relatively rare, with few recorded instances. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Saint Pamella, a 3rd-century Christian martyr from Rome. According to legend, she was executed during the reign of Emperor Aurelian for refusing to renounce her faith.
The name gained broader popularity in the 16th century due to the publication of the pastoral romance novel "Arcadia" by Sir Philip Sidney in 1590. The novel featured a character named Pamela, which helped to introduce and popularize the name in English-speaking regions.
One of the most famous historical figures named Pamella was Pamella Colman Smith (1878-1951), an English artist, illustrator, and occultist. She is best known for her illustrations of the iconic Rider-Waite Tarot deck, which has become one of the most widely recognized and used tarot decks worldwide.
Another notable Pamella was Pamella Britton (1923-1974), an American actress who appeared in numerous films and television shows during the golden age of Hollywood. She is perhaps best remembered for her role as Lorelei Sanger in the popular sitcom "My Favorite Martian" from 1963 to 1966.
In the world of literature, Pamella Neville (1907-1997) was a British novelist and short story writer. She is known for her works exploring themes of love, relationships, and the complexities of human emotions, such as "The Infestation" and "The Mother's Arms."
Pamella Tiffin (1942-2023) was an American actress and model who rose to prominence in the 1960s. She starred in various films, including the classic "One Million Years B.C." (1966), where she portrayed the iconic character of Loana.
While the name Pamella has experienced periods of greater and lesser popularity over the centuries, it has maintained a consistent presence throughout history, embodying the ideals of sweetness, charm, and grace associated with its Greek roots.
People
Pamella + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pamella as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Pamella: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pamella?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,230 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pamella 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 153,701 US residents.
Is Pamella a common name?
We classify Pamella as "Rare". It ranks above 94.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,166 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pamella most popular?
The single biggest year for Pamella was 1954, when 149 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pamella is about 64 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Pamella a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pamella 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.