The first name Ada
A girl’s name meaning “noble”.
Pronounced /ˈeɪdə/ 2 syllables Female
Meaning and origin
Ada means “noble”.
Short form of Germanic names beginning with adal (“noble”), such as Adelaide. Also Latinized form of Hebrew Adah. The programming language takes its name from Ada Lovelace.
More names that mean noble.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
In 2025, 1,014 girls were named Ada, making it the 40th most popular girls’ name. It peaked in 2020, with 1,140 births (#38).
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Ada with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Ada at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 1,401 girls born in the United States were named Ada, the 219th most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 1918, when 1,943 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Famous people named Ada
40 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Ada LovelaceEnglish mathematician (1815–1852)
- Ada of Caria4th-century BC Satrap and Queen of Caria, -400–-325
- Ada, Countess of HollandCountess regnant of Holland from 1203 to 1207
- Ada KokDutch swimmer (born 1947)
- Ada AdlerDanish classical scholar (1878-1946)
- Ada Louise HuxtableAmerican architecture writer (1921–2013)
- Ada PalmerAmerican historian and novelist (1981-)
- Ada FalcónArgentine singer and actress (1905-2002)
- Ada LeversonBritish writer (1862-1933)
- Ada LimónAmerican writer, born 1976
- Ada CambridgeEnglish-born Australian writer (1844-1926)
- Ada SmithBritish artistic gymnast (1903-1994)
Questions
- What does the name Ada mean?
- Ada means “noble”.
- How popular is the name Ada?
- In 2025, 1,014 girls born in England and Wales were named Ada, ranking 40th. Its peak was 2020, with 1,140 births.
- Is Ada a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a girl's name: 100% of the 107,183 US babies named Ada since 1880 were girls.
- When was Ada most popular?
- 1918 in the United States, when 1,943 babies were named Ada, its highest rank at 123rd.
- How do you pronounce Ada?
- Ada is /ˈeɪdə/, 2 syllables.