Debra
Hebrew Devorah, “bee,” borne by the prophetess and judge.
Popularity, 1880–2025
A streamlined 1950s respelling of Deborah that briefly outranked the original.
Debra first shows up in the national records in 1914. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1950 to 1974. It spent 9 years inside the top 10. Its biggest year was 1955, when 50,563 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 4 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1956, at No. 2. All told, 551,841 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Deborah (744,478), Debora (30,161), Debrah (4,404), Debbra (3,652), Debera (1,252), Deborrah (942) (total births since 1880)
Explore Debra interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 41 | No. 2900 |
| 1920s | 94 | No. 2011 |
| 1930s | 468 | No. 768 |
| 1940s | 5,429 | No. 134 |
| 1950s | 341,348 | No. 2 |
| 1960s | 153,771 | No. 8 |
| 1970s | 34,605 | No. 47 |
| 1980s | 9,823 | No. 177 |
| 1990s | 3,125 | No. 454 |
| 2000s | 1,213 | No. 1210 |
| 2010s | 547 | No. 2514 |
| 2020s | 231 | No. 3450 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.