Female name
Barbara
671 births (England and Wales, 1996–2025), peaking in 2018. Expression number: 7.
Origin
From Latin Barbara, the name of Saint Barbara, feminine form of barbarus, from Ancient Greek βάρβαρος (bárbaros, “strange, foreign”). Doublet of Varvara. (logic): From the given name; chosen because it has three A's in it representing universal affirmatives.From Wiktionary, entry “Barbara”, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Do you know a Barbara?
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How many babies received it
From the official birth registers.
In England and Wales
Peak in 2018: 42 births. 671 births from 1996 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s. It is still given: 87 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, Open Government Licence v3.0.
In the United States
Peak in 1947: 48,889 births. 1,440,831 births from 1880 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. At its peak, it ranked 2nd among girls' names in 1937. It is still given: 1,464 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, public domain.
In Ireland
Peak in 1971: 172 births. 3,087 births from 1964 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1960s and 1970s. At its peak, it ranked 43rd among girls' names in 1964. It is still given: 10 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies' Names, CC BY 4.0.
Elsewhere in the world
The name in the birth records of the 10 countries we track. The period covered varies from country to country.
| Country | Births | Period | Best rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 27,737* | 1915–2025 | — |
| France | 26,200 | 1900–2025 | 61st in 1972 |
| Austria | 8,053 | 1984–2025 | 4th in 1984 |
| Argentina | 4,772 | 2012–2023 | — |
| Quebec | 394 | 1980–2025 | — |
| Berlin | 202 | 2012–2023 | — |
* These are the people living in the country, counted by year of birth, not the number of births.
Source: Federal Statistical Office, First names of the population by year of birth, free use with attribution; INSEE, Fichier des prénoms, Etalab Open Licence 2.0; Statistik Austria, Vornamen, CC BY 4.0; RENAPER, Nombres propios en Argentina, CC BY 4.0 (the registry doesn't record sex); Retraite Québec, Banque de prénoms, CC BY 4.0; Open Data Berlin, Häufige Vornamen, CC BY 3.0 DE (every name a child carries, not only the first).
The numbers of the name
Each letter has a value: A = 1, B = 2… I = 9, then J = 1 again (Pythagorean method). We add them up, then reduce to a single digit, except 11, 22 and 33.
■ vowel · ■ consonant
Expression
All the letters: talents, the way you act.
7
reflection, inner life, seeking
2 + 1 + 9 + 2 + 1 + 9 + 1 = 25 → 7
Soul
The vowels: what drives you deep down.
3
expression, creativity, sociability
1 + 1 + 1 = 3
Personality
The consonants: what others notice first.
22
the large-scale builder (master number)
2 + 9 + 2 + 9 = 22
- Digits missing from the name
- 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
- Most frequent digit
- 1 · initiative, independence, beginnings
The meaning of the numbers comes from numerological tradition; it isn't a measure of your personality. A full portrait needs your first and middle names, your last name at birth, and your date of birth. How we calculate
Your name and theirs
The number of each name, and the number of the bond, which comes from adding them together. A symbolic game: what your two names say together, to be read as a metaphor, not as a verdict on your relationship.