The name Linda is of Scandinavian origin and means "pretty" or "beautiful." It was derived from the Old Norse word "ljóðný," which combines two elements: "ljóð" meaning "song, poem" and "nýr" meaning "new."
The name Linda has been popular for centuries in Scandinavia but gained widespread international recognition during the mid-20th century when it became a top choice among parents in many English-speaking countries. Today, Linda is still a beloved name across the globe.
Historically, the name Linda was often used as a nickname or shortened form of longer names such as Hlín, which appears in Norse mythology as one of Odin's maidens. However, over time, Linda evolved into an independent given name with its own unique identity.
Some notable individuals named Linda include American actresses Linda Hamilton and Linda Evans, Swedish jazz singer Linda Pettersson, and Canadian poet Linda Besner. These women have contributed to the rich tapestry of cultural and artistic achievements associated with the name Linda.
The statistics provided illustrate the fluctuation of babies named Linda born annually in the United States over a period of more than a century, from 1880 to 2023.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the number of births named Linda remained relatively low, with fewer than 100 births per year. However, starting in the mid-1930s, there was a significant increase in the popularity of the name Linda, reaching over 700 births in 1938 and over 1,000 births annually from 1940 onwards.
The peak popularity of the name Linda occurred in the years following World War II. Between 1946 and 1952, there were more than 50,000 births named Linda each year, with a record high of 99,693 births in 1947. This trend continued until the late 1950s and early 1960s when the popularity of the name began to decline.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the number of babies named Linda fluctuated between approximately 2,000 and 3,000 births per year. However, since the late 1980s, there has been a steady decrease in the popularity of the name Linda, with fewer than 500 births annually from the mid-1990s onwards.
In recent years, the number of babies named Linda born each year has stabilized at around 300 to 400 births per year. The most recent data available shows that there were 321 births named Linda in the United States in 2023.
Overall, these statistics demonstrate how trends and tastes in baby naming can change over time, with the name Linda experiencing periods of significant popularity followed by steady decline in recent decades.