Samantha
Girl nameSamantha has been given to 594,052 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1990 and currently ranks #151 for girls (2025).
Meaning & origin /səˈmænθə/
It was recorded in the 17th century in England. Most probably a feminine form of Samuel, possibly influenced by Anthea. Other suggestions include Aramaic ܫܡܥܢܬܐ (šemʿanta, “listener”, noun), from ܫܡܥ. In India, Samantha can be interpreted as a variant spelling of Samanta, from Sanskrit समन्त (samanta, “universal, adjacent”).API
Origin: Hebrew
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
594,052
Peak year
1990 (25,926 babies)
Rank in 2025
#151 for girls
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -63%
Gender split
100% girls / 0% boys
Famous people named Samantha
Samantha Stosur
Australian tennis player (born 1984)
Samantha Smith
American peace activist and child actress (1972–1985)
Samantha Cristoforetti
Italian European Space Agency astronaut, former Italian Air Force pilot and engineer (1977)
Samantha Fox
British singer
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Samantha.
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