Frances
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Meaning
feminine form of Francis (Late Latin Franciscus, "Frenchman")
Goes by Fran, Frankie, Frannie, Franny. See all nicknames
Famously borne by Frances Oldham Kelsey, FDA pharmacologist whose caution kept thalidomide off the US market.
The story
Frances is the feminine of Francis, from the Latin for a Frenchman; the freedom so often read into it came later, when the name of the Franks became the Old French word for free. It is a name of quiet trailblazers. Frances Perkins became the first woman to serve in a United States Cabinet and was the architect of Social Security, and Saint Frances of Rome and Saint Frances Cabrini gave it a long devotional grace. In fiction it belongs to the sharp, tender young heroine Frankie in The Member of the Wedding. It was a genuine classic in the United States around the turn of the twentieth century and has the vintage warmth that brings such names back, along with the affectionate short forms Fran, Frannie and Frankie. Understated, principled and quietly strong, Frances hands a child a name that freedom attached itself to centuries ago, worn by women who used theirs to change the world.
Frances across languages
One shared root links 8 names across 4 languages.
Shared root: from Late Latin Franciscus "the Frank, the Frenchman", fixed forever by the saint of Assisi
The constellation
More branches
How popular is Frances around the world?
In the United States, 4,883 babies were named Frances between 2020 and 2025. In New Zealand, 17 girls named Frances were registered in 2025.
Frances is on the official records of the United States, New Zealand, South Australia, England and Wales, Canada, Scotland, Montevideo, Mexico City, Chile, Brazil and Spain.
United States
1 in 4,500
In the United States, 4,883 babies were named Frances between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Frances peaked in the 1890s and the 1900s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
New Zealand
1 in 3,400
In New Zealand, 17 girls named Frances were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
South Australia
1 in 4,6002017
In South Australia, 4 girls were registered as Frances in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 5,200
In England and Wales, 112 girls named Frances were born in 2025, the 379th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Canada
1 in 5,700
In Canada, 64 girls named Frances were born in 2024, the 460th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Scotland
1 in 9,200
In Scotland, 5 girls named Frances were registered in 2024, the 541st most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Montevideo City
1 in 25,0002011
In Montevideo, 1 girl named Frances was born in 2011, spelling variants counted together.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
Mexico City City
1 in 59,000
In Mexico City, there were 2 registrations of Frances in 2022.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Chile
1 in 89,000
In Chile, 2 girls were registered as Frances in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Brazil
1 in 170,000
At the 2022 census, 1,120 people in Brazil were named Frances, ranked 7,656th, with a median age of 36.
Among people named Frances living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Spain
1 in 400,000
In Spain, 113 residents are named Frances, ranked 7,051st among women, with a mean age of 61.7 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Argentina
last on record 2022
Frances is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Austria
last on record 2021
Frances is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Ireland
last on record 2023
Frances is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
New South Wales
outside the top 100
Frances is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
Poland
last on record 2024
Frances is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Puerto Rico
last on record 2013
Frances is not on the 2025 record for Puerto Rico, which withholds births under 5, and 536 babies have carried the name there since 1998.
share of that year’s births on record
First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)
Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Frances
Most people given the name Frances in the United States were born between 1940 and 1979. The Frances you meet today is most often in her 60s or 70s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Nicknames for Frances · Saint names for babies and confirmation · Names of geniuses and inventors
The Frances deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Frances truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Frances fits with your family’s names and surname.
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