Serenity
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Meaning
"serenity," the calm-waters virtue word; American parents revived the Puritan habit of virtue naming in the 2000s and this one led the class alongside Harmony and Grace. A name that states its blessing outright
The story
Serenity is a virtue name drawn straight from the English word for calm, ultimately from the Latin serenus, 'clear' or 'tranquil.' Unlike Grace, Hope, and Faith, it is not an old colonial staple in the American record. Serenity is distinctly modern: almost absent before the late twentieth century, visible in the 1980s and 1990s, then rising quickly through the 2000s to a 2010s high. It has eased only a little in the 2020s. The timing places it beside a wider generation of expansive word names, from Destiny to Harmony, chosen not for an ancestor but for a wish. Four syllables make the idea feel ceremonial, while Reni offers an easy short form. Parents did not revive Serenity from an attic. They took a feeling and made it a name in real time.
How popular is Serenity around the world?
In the United States, 16,483 babies were named Serenity between 2020 and 2025.
Serenity is on the official records of the United States, Canada and England and Wales.
United States
1 in 1,300
In the United States, 16,483 babies were named Serenity between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Serenity peaked in the 2010s. Serenity went to 4,006 US babies in 2015 and 2,209 in 2025, 55% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 6,100
In Canada, 60 girls named Serenity were born in 2024, the 488th 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)
England and Wales
1 in 17,000
In England and Wales, 34 girls named Serenity were born in 2025, the 997th 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
Mexico City City
last on record 2021
Serenity is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
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
New Zealand
last on record 2024
Serenity is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
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
last on record 2016
Serenity is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 6 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Not on the record in Spain, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Ireland, Scotland and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). 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 Serenity
Most people given the name Serenity in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Serenity · Names that go with Serenity · Middle names for Serenity · Gentle names · Climbers and fallers
The Serenity deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Serenity 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 Serenity fits with your family’s names and surname.
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