Declining since 2011, #4,460 for girls today.
Popularity of Pandora since 1912
Babies named Pandora per year in U.S. Social Security records.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 11 |
| 1920s | 72 |
| 1930s | 58 |
| 1940s | 83 |
| 1950s | 659 |
| 1960s | 660 |
| 1970s | 285 |
| 1980s | 87 |
| 1990s | 173 |
| 2000s | 315 |
| 2010s | 498 |
| 2020s | 225 |
Meaning & origin
Pandora carries a rich mythological weight that parents may find intriguing or cautionary. In 2025, it ranked 4,460, with an occurrence of about 1 in 51,847, placing it far below the top 1,000. Its peak popularity came in 1952, during a mid-century interest in classical names, but its trajectory has been steadily falling since 2011. The name appears in U.S. records from 1912, reflecting early 20th-century revival of mythological names. Despite its rarity, Pandora has maintained a steady cultural presence through literature and art, and it offers distinctive feminine identity without being tied to any single state or region.
From Greek Πανδώρα (Pandora), from πᾶν (pan, 'all') and δῶρον (doron, 'gift'). In Hesiod's Theogony and Works and Days, Pandora was fashioned by Hephaestus on Zeus's order and given gifts by the gods. Her myth explains the origin of human suffering. The name was rarely used before the 19th century, when literary and artistic interest in classical themes revived it.
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Panda, Dora, Panny
Sibling names for Pandora
Names that share Pandora's style, for a brother or sister.
