Inez
Inez was the 1400th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 156 babies. Its best year was 1909, when it ranked 96th; the most babies were born in 1920 (2,107). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,424 places. More babies were named Inez in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning Spanish form of Agnes; "pure" · Spanish, Portuguese, Greek
Say it eye-NEZ /aɪˈnɛz/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,400 girls, up 656 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 156girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19202,107 babies
- Total since 1880
- 69,308babies recorded
What does the name Inez mean?
Inez is an English spelling of the Spanish Inés and Portuguese Inês, the local forms of Agnes. Agnes comes from the Greek hagnē, "pure, chaste", the name of a 3rd-century Roman martyr widely honored in the Middle Ages. Wiktionary notes that Inez first appeared in English through 18th-century poems and plays about Inês de Castro, a Portuguese noblewoman. It was a common American name around 1900.
ἁγνή (Ancient Greek, “pure, chaste”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Agnes, Inés, Inês, Ines.
See also: Greek names, virtue names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Inez', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Agnes', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wikipedia, 'Inez', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Inez popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 955 since 1906.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,400 | 156 |
| 2020 | #2,056 | 90 |
| 2010 | #3,481 | 46 |
| 2000 | #2,246 | 70 |
| 1990 | #1,707 | 86 |
| 1980 | #1,144 | 119 |
| 1970 | #929 | 138 |
| 1960 | #660 | 236 |
| 1950 | #429 | 352 |
| 1940 | #262 | 566 |
| 1930 | #171 | 1,173 |
| 1920 | #122 | 2,107 |
| 1910 | #97 | 916 |
| 1900 | #112 | 588 |
| 1890 | #131 | 299 |
| 1880 | #141 | 106 |
How popular is Inez, counting every spelling?
Inez has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #1,311 for girls in 2025, against #1,400 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Inez?
156 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Inez (0.04 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Inez born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 54 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Inez.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Inez?
About 13,200 people born in the US named Inez are alive today, with a median age of 68; half are between 44 and 81. That makes Inez a name most people associate with older generations. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Inez by state
How common Inez was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in California (2.1×). In 37 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Inez: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Inez, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Inez · Sibling names for Inez
Questions about the name Inez
What does Inez mean?
Inez means “Spanish form of Agnes; "pure"” (Spanish, Portuguese, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Inez?
Inez was the 1400th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 156 babies. Its best year was 1909, when it ranked 96th; the most babies were born in 1920 (2,107). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,424 places. More babies were named Inez in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Inez a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Inez in the US.
Where is Inez most popular?
In 2021–2025, Inez was most common in California (0.17 per 1,000 girls), followed by Arizona and Colorado.