Yvonne
A French feminine name derived from Evon, the Germanic name meaning "yew tree".
Name Census estimates that about 95,128 living Americans carry the first name Yvonne. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Yvonne today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yvonne births was 1953 (3,700 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yvonne. 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.
Key insights
- • Although Yvonne is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 619 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1950s, recent registration numbers for Yvonne have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
95K
~ 1 in 3,603 Americans
Peak year
1953
3,700 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
1990 SSA rank
#2,318
Tracked since 1886
Gender
Gender distribution for Yvonne
Out of the 156,647 babies given the name Yvonne 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.
Yvonne as a male name
- Ranked #9,472 in 1990
- 5 male births in 1990
- Peak: 1969 (17 births)
Yvonne as a female name
- Ranked #2,318 in 2024
- 80 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1953 (3,686 births)
Popularity
Yvonne: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yvonne from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 35,148 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
Yvonne 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 Yvonne during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yvonnes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Yvonne, while Wyoming, Alaska, Vermont recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 2,964 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Yvonne
The name Yvonne has its origins in the French language and is derived from the Germanic name Ivo or Yvo. The name Ivo is believed to have evolved from the Old Norse name Ivar, meaning "yew" or "archer." The earliest recorded use of the name Yvonne dates back to the Middle Ages.
Yvonne gained popularity as a French female name during the 12th and 13th centuries. It is a variant of the masculine name Yvon, which was widely used in medieval France. The name Yvon is thought to have been introduced to France by the Normans, who had adopted it from the Old Norse name Ivar.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Yvonne, Countess of Hainaut, who lived in the late 12th century. She was a prominent figure in the courts of Flanders and Hainaut, and her name helped popularize the use of Yvonne among the French nobility.
In the 13th century, the name Yvonne appeared in several French literary works, including the Roman de la Rose and the Chanson de Roland. This literary recognition further contributed to the name's widespread use in France during the Middle Ages.
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Yvonne. Yvonne de Gaulle (1900-1979) was the wife of French President Charles de Gaulle and played a significant role in supporting her husband's political career. Yvonne Arnaud (1892-1958) was a renowned French actress who achieved great success on the stage and in films during the early 20th century.
Yvonne Chouteau (1929-2015) was a prominent American ballet dancer and teacher, known for her role as a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet. Yvonne Strahovski (born 1982) is an Australian actress best known for her roles in popular TV shows like Chuck and The Handmaid's Tale.
Yvonne Catterfeld (born 1979) is a German singer and actress who gained fame as a contestant on the talent show Starmania and has since released several successful albums and appeared in various television shows and films.
While the name Yvonne has French origins, it has been widely adopted in various cultures and languages, particularly in English-speaking countries. Its enduring popularity can be attributed to its melodic sound and historical significance, reflecting the cultural exchange and influences that have shaped many names throughout the centuries.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Yvonne
People
Yvonne + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yvonne as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yvonne: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yvonne?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 95,128 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yvonne 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 3,603 US residents.
Is Yvonne a common name?
We classify Yvonne as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 156,647 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yvonne most popular?
The single biggest year for Yvonne was 1953, when 3,700 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yvonne is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Yvonne a female name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Yvonne 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.