NamesGirlA › Aretha
Girl name

Aretha

/ɚˈiθə/ · 100% girls · last recorded 2023

Aretha has been given to about 5,656 people in the United States since 1880. It was most common in 1968, which makes it a boomer-era name.

Meaning
Origin
Syllables3
Pronunciation/ɚˈiθə/
Nicknames
Living in the US≈ 4,504
Median age today58 years

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Aretha per year · SSA, ONS, NRS, CSO, INSEE and SSB
18802025
United StatesEngland & WalesFranceeach scaled to its own peak
  • Peak year1968 · 543
  • Born in 20250
  • All time5,656

How popular is Aretha?

Its best year was 1968, when 543 babies were given the name, ranking 398th. The typical living American called Aretha is about 58 years old today.

Names that sound like Aretha

Phonetic similarity, 0–1
  1. Aletha0.88
  2. Retha0.82
  3. Alesha0.75
  4. Ayesha0.75
  5. Doretha0.74
  6. Martha0.70
  7. Albertha0.72
  8. Letha0.70

Middle names for Aretha

Ranked by flow score
  1. Aretha Rose0.89
  2. Aretha Louise0.89
  3. Aretha June0.88
  4. Aretha Pearl0.88
  5. Aretha Quinn0.88
  6. Aretha Nell0.88

Sibling names for Aretha

Same era, comparable use, no clash
  1. Troybrother · 0.75
  2. Larasister · 0.75
  3. Heidisister · 0.72
  4. Georginasister · 0.72
  5. Scottieeither · 0.72
  6. Barronbrother · 0.71

Where Aretha is strongest

Share of 2025 births by state

    With a common surname

    Flow score against the most-used American surnames · try your own
    1. Aretha White0.84
    2. Aretha Reyes0.84
    3. Aretha Nguyen0.84
    4. Aretha Moore0.84
    5. Aretha Lee0.84
    6. Aretha Hill0.84

    How to read these numbers

    Every score on this page is explained
    1. Phonetic similarity0–1
    2. Middle-name flow0–1
    3. Sibling fit0–1
    4. Living population estimatemethod
    5. PronunciationCMU dictionary

    Sources for Aretha

    Every figure on this page is public record
    1. United States1880–2025
    2. England & Wales1996–2025
    3. France1900–2025
    4. PronunciationCMU dictionary

    Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.