Clarissa
A Latinate elaboration of Clarice and Clare, which rest on the Latin clarus, meaning 'bright', 'clear', or 'renowned'. Samuel Richardson used it for his 1748 novel.
Clarissa in 2025
Clarissa was given to 212 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 2,130th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 15,638 babies born.
The history of Clarissa
Clarissa reached its highest point in 1995, when 1,201 babies were given the name, ranking 486th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 485th, in 1994.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 40,505 babies have been named Clarissa. Half of them were born before 1993, which places the name's centre of gravity with Millennials.
Clarissa by decade
| Decade | Babies named Clarissa | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 133 | 886 |
| 1890s | 221 | 867 |
| 1900s | 252 | 842 |
| 1910s | 596 | 1,197 |
| 1920s | 663 | 1,503 |
| 1930s | 512 | 1,613 |
| 1940s | 680 | 1,554 |
| 1950s | 1,402 | 1,286 |
| 1960s | 2,323 | 1,038 |
| 1970s | 3,473 | 864 |
| 1980s | 6,385 | 595 |
| 1990s | 10,602 | 485 |
| 2000s | 7,558 | 626 |
| 2010s | 4,266 | 1,049 |
| 2020s | 1,439 | 1,695 |
Where Clarissa is heading
Clarissa has fallen 48% over the past decade, from 408 babies in 2015 to 212 in 2025.
Names like Clarissa
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Clarissa.