# Glenda (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/glenda/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Welsh |
| Meaning | “holy”, “fair”, “good” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɡlɛndə/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 109,522 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 295 / 109,227 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 22, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Coined in the twentieth century from Welsh glân (“holy, fair”) and da (“good”).

## What it means

Glenda is grouped under holy and white.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 48 | 3,370 |
| 2012 | 39 | 3,945 |
| 2013 | 32 | 4,461 |
| 2014 | 30 | 4,693 |
| 2015 | 27 | 5,029 |
| 2016 | 33 | 4,377 |
| 2017 | 24 | 5,423 |
| 2018 | 24 | 5,369 |
| 2019 | 22 | 5,674 |
| 2020 | 24 | 5,215 |
| 2021 | 27 | 4,888 |
| 2022 | 18 | 6,542 |
| 2023 | 23 | 5,449 |
| 2024 | 24 | 5,353 |
| 2025 | 20 | 5,987 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1952 | 10 | 2,586 |
| 1953 | 6 | 3,572 |
| 1954 | 8 | 3,037 |
| 1955 | 11 | 2,483 |
| 1956 | 8 | 3,055 |
| 1957 | 8 | 3,113 |
| 1958 | 12 | 2,418 |
| 1959 | 7 | 3,398 |
| 1960 | 10 | 2,752 |
| 1961 | 10 | 2,780 |
| 1962 | 7 | 3,428 |
| 1963 | 8 | 3,154 |
| 1964 | 6 | 3,772 |
| 1965 | 5 | 4,122 |
| 1966 | 6 | 3,677 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 5 | 2,770 |
| 2004 | 3 | 4,598 |
| 2005 | 4 | 3,970 |
| 2006 | 3 | 5,061 |
| 2012 | 4 | 4,838 |
| 2024 | 3 | 5,891 |

## People named Glenda

- Glenda Jackson, British actress and politician (1936–2023)
- Glenda Farrell, American actress (1904–1971)
- Glenda Morejón, Ecuadorian racewalker
- Glenda Adams, Australian novelist and short story writer (1939–2007)
- Glenda Schroeder, American software engineer
- Glenda Hatchett, American judge
- Glenda Bailey, British magazine editor

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.