FastNamesSarah
Hebrew name meaning "Derived from Hebrew Sarah (שָׂרָה), meaning 'princess', 'noblewoman', or 'lady of high rank'.". Ranked 90th for girls in 2025.
Meaning and origin of Sarah
Derived from Hebrew Sarah (שָׂרָה), meaning 'princess', 'noblewoman', or 'lady of high rank'.
Linguistically, Sarah is classified under Hebrew naming traditions. It is typically pronounced "SAIR-uh".
Popularity and ranking
In official US Social Security birth records from 1880 through 2025, Sarah has been given to a total of 1,098,498 girls. It has also been given to 3,340 boys.
Peak year: Sarah reached its highest relative share among girls in 1981, when 28,175 babies received the name (16,891 per million births).
All-time best rank: 3rd place, first achieved in 1993.
Recent standing (2025): Ranked 90th with 2,710 births. Ten years earlier in 2015, it ranked 57th (down 33 spots).
Busiest decade: More girls were named Sarah in the 1980s than in any other decade (272,637 births).
| Decade | Recorded births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 14,715 |
| 1890s | 17,154 |
| 1900s | 17,342 |
| 1910s | 38,120 |
| 1920s | 46,769 |
| 1930s | 36,513 |
| 1940s | 39,977 |
| 1950s | 39,966 |
| 1960s | 43,913 |
| 1970s | 118,823 |
| 1980s | 272,637 |
| 1990s | 224,423 |
| 2000s | 124,545 |
| 2010s | 46,657 |
| 2020s | 16,944 |
Source: Social Security Administration, national baby name data, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
Where Sarah is most common in the US
Accounting for when Sarah was in fashion nationally, it has been most heavily concentrated in the following states (measured against the expected rate from each state's births):
- Vermont: 1.6 times the national rate (2,811 births since 1910).
- New Hampshire: 1.6 times the national rate (5,716 births since 1910).
- South Carolina: 1.6 times the national rate (22,446 births since 1910).
- Alaska: 1.6 times the national rate (2,616 births since 1910).
- Delaware: 1.4 times the national rate (3,061 births since 1910).
Source: Social Security Administration, baby names by state, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a state in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
How many people have the name Sarah?
About 891,000 living American girls and women share the name Sarah. Additionally, an estimated 2,400 living American boys and men share the name.
The median age of an American named Sarah is 38 years old.
Estimated from Social Security Administration records (1880–2025) and official SSA cohort mortality tables.
History of the name Sarah
In the Hebrew Bible, Sarah was the revered matriarch of the Jewish people, the wife and half-sister of Abraham, and mother of Isaac in her advanced age after God promised that she would become a mother of nations (Genesis 17:15–16). Her original name Sarai ('quarrelsome' or 'contentious') was divinely transformed to Sarah ('princess' or 'noblewoman') to reflect her covenantal destiny.
Following the Protestant Reformation, Sarah gained immense popularity throughout Britain and colonial America as Puritan families embraced biblical names of profound piety. The name was consistently favored by royalty, literary authors, and historical figures, such as Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, and prominent American suffragists like Sarah Grimké.
In United States vital statistics, Sarah represents one of the most enduring and beloved classic names for girls in American history. It ranked in the national top fifty virtually without interruption from 1880 through the early 2000s, holding top-ten status consecutively from 1978 through 2002, with peak births exceeding 28,000 annually.
Notable people named Sarah
- Sarah Jessica Parker (1965–), American actress and television producer
- Sarah Michelle Gellar (1977–), American actress known for Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Sarah Paulson (1974–), American Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress
- Sarah Silverman (1970–), American comedian, actress, and writer
Variants and related names
Spelling variants
Diminutives and nicknames
Related names
Sources and references
- Patrick Hanks, Kate Hardcastle, Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of First Names (2006), p. 240.
- E. G. Withycombe. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names (1977), p. 264.
- Francis Brown, S. R. Driver, Charles A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), p. 979.