Winnie
Winnie was the 475th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 646 babies. Its best year was 1881, when it ranked 162nd; the most babies were born in 2025 (646). Over the last ten years it has moved up 714 places. More babies were named Winnie in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning pet form of Winifred (and others) · Welsh, English
Say it WIN-ee /ˈwɪni/
- Rank in 2025
- #475 girls, up 296 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 646girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2025646 babies
- Total since 1880
- 27,337babies recorded
What does the name Winnie mean?
Winnie is a pet form, mainly of Winifred, and less often of Winona or Winston. Winifred is the English form of the name of a 7th-century Welsh saint, Gwenfrewi. DMNES explains it as Welsh gwen, white, plus an element of uncertain meaning. Wiktionary also traces Winifred through an Old English form. So Winnie carries Winifred's meaning only partly: "white" or "fair" is the secure part.
Gwenfrewi (Welsh, “Winifred”)gwen (Welsh, “white”)
How sure is this? Probable. The second part of Gwenfrewi is of uncertain meaning (DMNES).
Related names: Winifred, Winona, Winston, Win, Freddie.
See also: Welsh names, names that mean a color.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Winnie' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Winifred', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Winifred' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
Winnie popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 228 since 1883.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #475 | 646 |
| 2020 | #771 | 353 |
| 2010 | #2,475 | 76 |
| 2000 | #1,816 | 96 |
| 1990 | #2,051 | 66 |
| 1980 | #2,390 | 41 |
| 1970 | #2,078 | 40 |
| 1960 | #1,293 | 73 |
| 1950 | #761 | 130 |
| 1940 | #433 | 247 |
| 1930 | #393 | 297 |
| 1920 | #294 | 490 |
| 1910 | #244 | 248 |
| 1900 | #190 | 271 |
| 1890 | #181 | 166 |
| 1880 | #222 | 49 |
How popular is Winnie, counting every spelling?
Winnie is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #458 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #475 for Winnie on its own. Together these spellings went to 696 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winnie | 646 | #475 | 2,613 |
| Wynnie | 45 | #3,454 | 136 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Winnie?
646 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Winnie (0.18 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Winnie 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 13 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Winnie.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Winnie?
About 9,900 people born in the US named Winnie are alive today, with a median age of 19; half are between 5 and 68. That makes Winnie mostly worn by children and young adults. 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.
Winnie by state
How common Winnie was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Nebraska (2.9×), Utah (2.7×), Minnesota (2.5×), Missouri (2.4×), Iowa (2.3×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Texas, California, Virginia.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Winnie: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Winnie, they share its era and feel.
Winnie is also a nickname for Winston, Winona and Winifred.
Questions about the name Winnie
What does Winnie mean?
Winnie means “pet form of Winifred (and others)” (Welsh, English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Winnie?
Winnie was the 475th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 646 babies. Its best year was 1881, when it ranked 162nd; the most babies were born in 2025 (646). Over the last ten years it has moved up 714 places. More babies were named Winnie in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Winnie a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Winnie in the US.
Where is Winnie most popular?
In 2021–2025, Winnie was most common in Nebraska (0.95 per 1,000 girls), followed by Utah and North Dakota.