Sally
Originally a pet form of Sarah, produced by the medieval habit of swapping r for l. Sarah is Hebrew for 'lady' or 'princess'.
Sally in 2025
Sally was given to 201 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 2,206th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 16,494 babies born.
The history of Sally
Sally reached its highest point in 1947, when 5,279 babies were given the name, ranking 140th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 100th, in 1939.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 205,876 babies have been named Sally. Half of them were born before 1948, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Baby Boomers.
Sally by decade
| Decade | Babies named Sally | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 1,010 | 302 |
| 1890s | 1,668 | 280 |
| 1900s | 3,294 | 221 |
| 1910s | 9,338 | 216 |
| 1920s | 13,533 | 200 |
| 1930s | 34,838 | 100 |
| 1940s | 45,495 | 109 |
| 1950s | 46,805 | 148 |
| 1960s | 24,422 | 235 |
| 1970s | 9,305 | 454 |
| 1980s | 6,143 | 611 |
| 1990s | 4,183 | 867 |
| 2000s | 2,582 | 1,288 |
| 2010s | 2,095 | 1,915 |
| 2020s | 1,165 | 2,072 |
Where Sally is heading
Sally has fallen 9% over the past decade, from 222 babies in 2015 to 201 in 2025.
That is less than 5% of its 1947 peak — Sally is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Sally
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Sally.