First Name
26k
in the U.S.
since 1880
Last Name
<100
in the U.S.
in 2010
Girls
Boys
On This Page
  1. Related Names
  2. Pronunciation
  3. Meanings and Origins
  4. Notable Persons Named Willa
  5. Popularity by Year and Gender
  6. Regional Popularity
  7. Fun Facts
  8. What Willas Have Visited This Page?
  9. Name Poster

How to Pronounce Willa

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Meaning and Origin

What does the name Willa mean? Find out below.

Origin and Meaning of Willa

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Wiktionary

American 19th century coinage based on Wilhelmina and the male given names Will and William.

  1. A female given name.
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Notable Persons Named Willa

Willa Holland

Willa Holland is an actress, voice actress, and model. Willa was given the name Willa Joannachance Holland by her parent Brian De Palma on June 18th, 1991 in Los Angeles, California, United States.

Popularity:
Willa Fitzgerald

Popularity:
Willa Cather

Willa Cather was a writer. Her most notable accomplishments were from 1905 to 1947. Willa was given the name Wilella Sibert Cather on December 7th, 1873 in Gore, Virginia, United States. She left this life on April 24th, 1947.

Popularity:
Willa Ford

Willa Ford is a pop music and dance-pop singing, songwriter, dance, record producer, presenter, and actor. Her most notable accomplishments were from 1999 to present. Willa was given the name Amanda Lee Williford on January 22nd, 1981. Willa is also known as Mandy Modano.

Popularity:
Willa Brown

Willa Brown was a pilot (aeronautics), lobbying, activism, teacher, pilot, lobbyist, and activist. Willa was born on January 22nd, 1906 in Glasgow, Kentucky. She died on July 18th, 1992.

Popularity:
Willa of Tuscany

Willa was born as the child of Boso and Margrave of Tuscany in Arles. She died in 970.

Popularity:
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How popular is the baby name Willa in the U.S.?

Click Here to Show Chart Data
Year Total Babies Born Girls Born Boys Born
1880 12 12 0
1881 10 10 0
1882 15 15 0
1883 20 20 0
1884 16 16 0
1885 25 25 0
1886 31 31 0
1887 31 31 0
1888 39 39 0
1889 40 40 0
1890 51 51 0
1891 35 35 0
1892 51 51 0
1893 48 48 0
1894 43 43 0
1895 53 53 0
1896 67 67 0
1897 58 58 0
1898 60 60 0
1899 61 61 0
1900 84 84 0
1901 55 55 0
1902 64 64 0
1903 79 79 0
1904 91 91 0
1905 92 92 0
1906 97 97 0
1907 106 106 0
1908 99 99 0
1909 123 123 0
1910 134 134 0
1911 145 145 0
1912 180 180 0
1913 208 208 0
1914 251 251 0
1915 292 292 0
1916 316 316 0
1917 336 336 0
1918 425 425 0
1919 382 382 0
1920 424 424 0
1921 407 407 0
1922 416 416 0
1923 457 457 0
1924 471 471 0
1925 520 520 0
1926 536 536 0
1927 566 566 0
1928 501 501 0
1929 501 494 7
1930 512 512 0
1931 450 450 0
1932 520 515 5
1933 468 462 6
1934 486 486 0
1935 414 414 0
1936 454 454 0
1937 411 405 6
1938 368 368 0
1939 375 375 0
1940 374 374 0
1941 401 401 0
1942 420 420 0
1943 364 364 0
1944 371 371 0
1945 344 344 0
1946 300 300 0
1947 303 303 0
1948 244 244 0
1949 293 293 0
1950 256 256 0
1951 238 238 0
1952 276 276 0
1953 229 229 0
1954 226 226 0
1955 237 237 0
1956 185 185 0
1957 168 168 0
1958 164 164 0
1959 139 139 0
1960 149 149 0
1961 138 138 0
1962 135 135 0
1963 98 98 0
1964 109 109 0
1965 92 92 0
1966 76 76 0
1967 74 74 0
1968 41 41 0
1969 44 44 0
1970 50 50 0
1971 48 48 0
1972 34 34 0
1973 29 29 0
1974 27 27 0
1975 28 28 0
1976 24 24 0
1977 27 27 0
1978 32 32 0
1979 34 34 0
1980 24 24 0
1981 29 29 0
1982 26 26 0
1983 23 23 0
1984 37 37 0
1985 23 23 0
1986 30 30 0
1987 24 24 0
1988 32 32 0
1989 32 32 0
1990 27 27 0
1991 30 30 0
1992 31 31 0
1993 41 41 0
1994 48 48 0
1995 49 49 0
1996 35 35 0
1997 33 33 0
1998 46 46 0
1999 64 64 0
2000 56 56 0
2001 59 59 0
2002 97 97 0
2003 95 95 0
2004 99 99 0
2005 121 121 0
2006 116 116 0
2007 201 201 0
2008 247 247 0
2009 252 252 0
2010 269 269 0
2011 261 261 0
2012 389 389 0
2013 406 406 0
2014 562 562 0
2015 673 673 0
2016 685 685 0
2017 691 691 0
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Where is the name Willa popular?

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Popularity of Willa as a first name

The map shows the relative popularity of the name Willa as a first name in each of the states. See other popular names in West Virginia, Oklahoma, or Arkansas.

Popularity of Willa as a last name

The map shows the absolute popularity of the name Willa as a last name in each of the states. See other popular names in Missouri, Ohio, or Illinois.

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Common last names for Willa

  • Smith
  • Johnson
  • Williams
  • Brown
  • Jones
  • Davis
  • Taylor
  • Jackson
  • Thomas
  • White
  • Miller
  • Harris
  • Anderson
  • Wilson
  • Thompson
  • Moore
  • Hall
  • Martin
  • Clark

Fun Facts about the name Willa

  • What name lists does Willa rank for?
    #71Vintage Girl Names
  • How Popular is the name Willa? Willa is the 1,474th most popular name of all time.
  • How many people with the first name Willa have been born in the United States? From 1880 to 2017, the Social Security Administration has recorded 26,366 babies born with the first name Willa in the United States. That's more than enough people named Willa to occupy the territory of British Virgin Islands (United Kingdom) with an estimated population of 24,000 (as of July 1, 2012).
  • What year were 5 or more babies first named Willa? The name was first given to 5 or more babies in the year 1880 when it was given as a first name to 12 new born babies.
  • When was Willa first recorded in the United States? The oldest recorded birth by the Social Security Administration for the first name Willa is Saturday, September 10th, 1870.
  • What year had the most people named Willa born? The highest recorded use of the first name Willa was in 2017 with a total of 691 babies.
  • Random Willa Factoid: According to the 2016 U.S. Social Security Administration data, the first name Willa ranks 85th in popularity as a baby girl's name in Vermont. Imagine that, 6 babies in Vermont have the same name as you in 2016.
  • Weird things about the name Willa: Your name in reverse order is Alliw. A random rearrangement of the letters in your name (anagram) will give Liwla. How do you pronounce that?
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What Willas Have Visited This Page?

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Name poster for Willa

Name poster for Willa(click to save the high quality version)

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All Name Lists

  • Sources:
  • U.S. Census Bureau: Frequently Occurring Surnames from the Census 2000 (public domain).
  • U.S. Social Security Administration: Popular Baby Names, Death Master File (public domain).
  • Wiktionary: Titles and License.
  • Notable persons via Wikipedia: Titles and License. Click each image for the attribution information.