Zerelda
A feminine given name derived from Old French, meaning "excellent counsel".
Name Census estimates that about 21 living Americans carry the first name Zerelda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Zerelda today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zerelda births was 1939 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zerelda. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Zerelda. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
21
~ 1 in 16,321,635 Americans
Peak year
1939
7 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
2016 SSA rank
#18,838
Tracked since 1914
Popularity
Zerelda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zerelda from the 1910s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 12 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zerelda 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 Zerelda during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Zerelda
The name Zerelda has its origins in the Hebrew language and can be traced back to the biblical period. It is derived from the Hebrew words "zera" meaning "seed" and "leddah" meaning "to give birth." The name thus signifies the idea of fertility and new life.
In ancient Hebrew texts, particularly the Torah and other religious scriptures, there are mentions of women with names similar to Zerelda, such as Zereda and Zeruiah. While these names are not an exact match, they share the same linguistic roots and likely held similar connotations.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Zerelda can be found in the 16th century, when it was used by a Scottish noblewoman named Zerelda Campbell (1510-1568). She was a prominent figure in the court of Mary, Queen of Scots, and played a significant role in the political affairs of the time.
In the 17th century, the name gained some popularity in England and the American colonies. Zerelda Read (1635-1692) was an English Puritan woman who immigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony and became a prominent member of the local community.
Another notable figure in history who bore the name Zerelda was Zerelda G. James (1825-1909), the mother of the infamous American outlaw Jesse James. She was known for her unwavering support of her son and his gang, and her name became closely associated with the legend of the James brothers.
In the 19th century, the name was also used by Zerelda Ione Mimms (1856-1943), an American schoolteacher and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement in Texas.
Zerelda Simmons (1870-1952) was an American author and journalist who wrote extensively about the lives of women in the American West. Her works, such as "The Women of the West" and "The Trail Blazers," shed light on the experiences of pioneer women and their contributions to the settlement of the western frontier.
While the name Zerelda has never been widely popular, it has maintained a consistent presence throughout history, often associated with strong, influential women who left their mark on their respective eras.
People
Zerelda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zerelda as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zerelda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zerelda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 21 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zerelda 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 16,321,635 US residents.
Is Zerelda a common name?
We classify Zerelda as "Very Rare". It ranks above 40.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 49 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zerelda most popular?
The single biggest year for Zerelda was 1939, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zerelda is about 46 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Zerelda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zerelda 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.