first name
GRETCHEN
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 44,623 people named Gretchen, 90.5% reported their origin as White, 3.2% as Hispanic or Latino and 2.9% as Black. Virtually all are female (99.9%). These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Gretchen peaked in 1973, when 1,351 babies got the name.
At least 53,837 babies have been given the name since 1882. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Gretchen by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1970s, when it ranked #425. The largest share of babies named Gretchen, 32.6%, were born between 1965 and 1980, Generation X's birth years.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Gretchen is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Gretchen has been most common in Minnesota (3×), Iowa (2.1×), and Wisconsin (2×), and least common in Mississippi (0.19×).
47,945 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Gretchen
Spelled almost the same
2 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Gretchen, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Gretchen ranks #117,879 of 156,621, with 156 people. See Gretchen as a last name
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🔎 GRETCHEN 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜⬜ 1 in 6,769 Americans Rarer than 69.6% of us Peaked in 1973 with 1,351 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/gretchen/