Jessica
First recorded in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, where it names Shylock's daughter. He may have adapted Iscah, a minor biblical name in Genesis.
Jessica in 2025
Jessica was given to 424 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 1,316th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 7,819 babies born.
The history of Jessica
Jessica reached its highest point in 1987, when 56,235 babies were given the name, ranking 2nd that year.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 1,054,307 babies have been named Jessica. Half of them were born before 1987, which places the name's centre of gravity with Millennials.
Jessica by decade
| Decade | Babies named Jessica | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 94 | 1,041 |
| 1890s | 135 | 1,042 |
| 1900s | 159 | 1,236 |
| 1910s | 411 | 1,344 |
| 1920s | 410 | 1,952 |
| 1930s | 499 | 1,419 |
| 1940s | 2,204 | 658 |
| 1950s | 4,559 | 695 |
| 1960s | 13,726 | 259 |
| 1970s | 144,020 | 14 |
| 1980s | 471,530 | 2 |
| 1990s | 303,905 | 3 |
| 2000s | 90,851 | 33 |
| 2010s | 18,247 | 220 |
| 2020s | 3,557 | 810 |
Where Jessica is heading
Jessica has fallen 73% over the past decade, from 1,592 babies in 2015 to 424 in 2025.
That is less than 5% of its 1987 peak — Jessica is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Jessica
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Jessica.