How popular is the baby name Clarissa in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Clarissa.

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Popularity of the baby name Clarissa


Posts that mention the name Clarissa

Baby name needed: Girl name for Eli’s sister

A reader named Liz, who already has a son named Eli, is now expecting a baby girl. Here’s her dilemma:

I love Caroline, my husband loves Marley, obviously we have different tastes and can’t seem to meet in the middle. I would like to use Ruth or Ellen for a middle name.

My first thought–and I’m sure Liz and her husband have already considered this: What about names like Madeleine, Marlene, and Marilyn? They have the feel of Caroline, but allow for the nickname Marley. (They don’t quite work with the middle name Ellen, though.)

There’s also the possibility of using Mary (or something similar) as a first name, Ellen as a middle, and Marley as a nickname for the combination.

My second thought: If popularity is an issue, they might want to be wary of Marley. It’s not too popular right now, but it’s steadily climbing the charts…and the movie Marley & Me could be what launches it into “trendy” territory.

Ok, enough thinking…it’s name time! On the left are formal names with fun nicknames; on the right are names that (by themselves) seem to be a good compromise between classic and cute.

Antonia (Toni, Nia)
Beatrix (Bea, Trixie)
Clarissa (Rissa)
Georgina (Gina, Gigi)
Josephine (Josie, Phina)
Matilda (Mattie, Tilda)
Miriam (Miri)*
Paulina (Paula, Lina)
Penelope (Penny, Nelle)
Theresa (Tess/a, Rese/a)
Victoria (Vickie, Tori)		Celia
Chloe
Cora
Daisy
Lucy
Lydia
Mara
Mia
Phoebe
Ruby
Sylvie

*I know, I know…also a recent movie name. I don’t think Zack and Miri Make a Porno is quite as widely known as Marley & Me, though.

What other ideas would you offer to Liz?

Highest-charting single-appearance baby names in the U.S. top 1,000

mountain peak

The baby names below, like hundreds of others, reached the U.S. top 1000 just once.

But these names are special, because they are the highest-charting single-appearance names ever. Impressively, each of the names blow ranked at least 700th (or well above!) during the single year they placed in the top 1,000.

NameRank & YearExplanation
Christop241st in 1989Typo*
Yulissa424th in 1997The 1996 telenovela Te Sigo Amando featured a character named Yulissa played by Claudia Ramírez.
Nira463rd in 1933The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) was authorized by Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1933.
Elizabet524th in 1989Typo*
Manilla536th in 1898The first military action of Spanish-American War was the 1898 battle for Manila, the capital of the Philippines.
Jemal549th in 1969The Outcasts (1968-1969), the first TV Western with an African-American co-star, featured a character named Jemal.
Alexande554th in 1989Typo*
Kunta572nd in 1977The 1977 miniseries Roots (based on the Alex Haley novel) featured a character named Kunta Kinte.
Shafter604th in 1898Maj. Gen. William Rufus Shafter’s forces took Santiago (and hence helped end the Spanish-American War) in 1898.
Destry636th in 1964The short-lived 1964 show Destry was a spin-off of the 1939 film “Destry Rides Again.”
Sonji638th in 1966In 1966, boxer Muhammad Ali divorced his first wife, Sonji Roi.
Sheilah665th in 1955In 1955, actor Guy Madison eloped with actress Sheilah Connolly.
Clarisa665th in 1994The 1993 Mexican telenovela Clarisa featured a main character named Clarisa. (Another possible factor: The popular Nickelodeon sitcom Clarissa Explains it All (1991-1994) won an Emmy in 1994.
Tatia670th in 1966A notable 1965 episode of the TV show I Spy (1965-1968) featured a character named Tatia Loring.
Alexandr676th in 1989Typo*
Cinnamon700th in 1969The first 3 seasons of the Mission: Impossible TV series (1966-1973) featured a character named Cinnamon Carter. (That’s what put Cinnamon on the map.) Early in 1969, “Cinnamon” by Derek (a.k.a. Johnny Cymbal) was an actual one-hit wonder that peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Later the same year, “Cinnamon Girl” by Neil Young was released.
Beyonce700th in 2001Destiny’s Child (featuring Beyoncé Knowles) won two Grammy Awards in 2001.

I didn’t include single-appearance names from the 1880s (like Manerva, Zilpah, Worley, Ambers, Orilla, and Simona), and it’s too early to include names from the 2006 data (Addisyn, Krish, Yandel, Rihanna).

*Here’s more about those typos from 1989.

Image: Adapted from Pointe de Nantaux 05 by Krzysztof Golik under CC BY-SA 4.0.