Linda
Meaning
beautiful
Famously borne by Colombian phenom Linda Caicedo.
The story
Linda carries two histories in one word. In medieval Europe it was a short form of Germanic names built on lind, an element meaning soft and tender; in Spanish and Portuguese it happens to be the everyday word for pretty. Its American story, though, runs through a song. In 1942 the songwriter Jack Lawrence wrote 'Linda' for his lawyer's one-year-old daughter, and when Buddy Clark's recording climbed the charts in 1947, the name shot to number one, ending Mary's long reign and holding the top spot through 1952. One study of a century of records called Linda the trendiest name in American history, its 1947 leap the largest ever measured. The baby the song was written for grew up to be Linda McCartney; the name, for a while, belonged to everyone.
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Linda peaked in the 1950s.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
10,453 people · the #1,661 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 19,608 · median age 28
Among people named Linda living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
The census also counted 795 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Linda
Most people given the name Linda in the United States were born between 1940 and 1969. The Linda 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.
The Linda deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Linda 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 Linda fits with your family’s names and surname.
Where Linda travels
Vietnamese American · a common refugee-generation English name
Chinese American · hugely popular for mid-century Chinese American daughters
Keep exploring
Vietnamese American baby names · Chinese American baby names · Names of soccer legends
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