# Norma (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/norma/  
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 | not recorded |
| Meaning | “pattern”, “model” |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 279,349 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 1,278 / 278,071 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 38, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Coined name of an imaginary Celtic priestess in Bellini's opera Norma (1831). Sometimes explained as Latin norma (“pattern, model”), or as a feminine form of Norman.

## 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 | 105 | 1,905 |
| 2012 | 60 | 2,895 |
| 2013 | 86 | 2,184 |
| 2014 | 84 | 2,252 |
| 2015 | 77 | 2,399 |
| 2016 | 87 | 2,216 |
| 2017 | 81 | 2,299 |
| 2018 | 81 | 2,267 |
| 2019 | 74 | 2,422 |
| 2020 | 75 | 2,372 |
| 2021 | 99 | 1,977 |
| 2022 | 89 | 2,153 |
| 2023 | 87 | 2,191 |
| 2024 | 69 | 2,580 |
| 2025 | 95 | 2,012 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 8 | 4,717 |
| 1980 | 5 | 6,981 |
| 1981 | 9 | 4,395 |
| 1982 | 19 | 2,573 |
| 1983 | 14 | 3,186 |
| 1984 | 11 | 3,860 |
| 1985 | 12 | 3,741 |
| 1986 | 13 | 3,596 |
| 1987 | 14 | 3,464 |
| 1988 | 8 | 5,577 |
| 1989 | 9 | 5,474 |
| 1990 | 8 | 6,252 |
| 1991 | 6 | 7,963 |
| 1992 | 6 | 8,161 |
| 1993 | 5 | 9,742 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 3 | 3,848 |
| 2001 | 4 | 3,262 |
| 2005 | 4 | 3,970 |
| 2017 | 3 | 5,765 |
| 2018 | 3 | 5,666 |
| 2019 | 4 | 4,686 |
| 2020 | 5 | 3,899 |
| 2021 | 5 | 3,961 |
| 2023 | 4 | 4,709 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5,927 |

## People named Norma

- Norma Shearer, Canadian-American actress (1902-1983)
- Norma Aleandro, Argentine actress
- Norma Talmadge, American actress and film producer (1894–1957)
- Norma Cappagli, Argentine Miss World 1960 (1939–2020)
- Norma Croker, Australian sprinter (1934-2019)
- Norma Nolan, Argentine model (1938–2025)
- Norma Bengell, Brazilian actress, director, screenwriter (1935–2013)
- Norma Varden, English actress (1898-1989)
- Norma Crane, American stage, film and television actress (1928 - 1973)
- Norma Thrower, Australian hurdler
- Norma Miller, American dancer (1919-2019)
- Norma Stitz, American fetish model

## 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.