NamesGirlF › Fern
Girl name

Fern

/ˈfɝn/ · 99% girls · 186 born in 2025

Fern has been given to about 38,195 people in the United States since 1880. It was most common in 1918, which makes it a Edwardian name.

Meaning
Origin
Syllables1
Pronunciation/ˈfɝn/
Nicknames
Living in the US≈ 10,942
Median age today78 years

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Fern per year · SSA, ONS, NRS, CSO, INSEE and SSB
18802025
United StatesEngland & WalesScotlandeach scaled to its own peak
  • Peak year1918 · 1,356
  • Born in 2025186
  • All time38,195
  • England & Wales, 2025#302 · 149

How popular is Fern?

Its best year was 1918, when 1,356 babies were given the name, ranking 164th. The typical living American called Fern is about 78 years old today. It is relatively most common in Oregon, where it accounts for 0.05% of births.

Names that sound like Fern

Phonetic similarity, 0–1
  1. Ferne0.68
  2. Verna0.64
  3. Lavern0.64
  4. Vera0.59
  5. Vernell0.53
  6. Vernie0.52
  7. Verona0.52
  8. Verda0.48

Middle names for Fern

Ranked by flow score
  1. Fern Alice0.78
  2. Fern Iris0.77
  3. Fern Opal0.77
  4. Fern Ivy0.77
  5. Fern Catherine0.74
  6. Fern Belle0.74

Sibling names for Fern

Same era, comparable use, no clash
  1. Cleoeither · 0.98
  2. Luellasister · 0.98
  3. Goldiesister · 0.97
  4. Estellesister · 0.96
  5. Archiebrother · 0.90
  6. Sambrother · 0.88

Where Fern is strongest

Share of 2025 births by state
  1. Oregon0.05%
  2. Utah0.03%
  3. Minnesota0.02%
  4. Iowa0.02%
  5. Washington0.02%

With a common surname

Flow score against the most-used American surnames · try your own
  1. Fern Anderson0.73
  2. Fern Allen0.73
  3. Fern Adams0.73
  4. Fern Evans0.70
  5. Fern Edwards0.70
  6. Fern Wilson0.69

How to read these numbers

Every score on this page is explained
  1. Phonetic similarity0–1
  2. Middle-name flow0–1
  3. Sibling fit0–1
  4. Living population estimatemethod
  5. PronunciationCMU dictionary

Sources for Fern

Every figure on this page is public record
  1. United States1880–2025
  2. England & Wales1996–2025
  3. Scotland1974–2020
  4. PronunciationCMU dictionary

Fern across America

Share of 2025 births in each state. Darker means more common.
ME
WA
VT
NH
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
CA
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
DC
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
SC
AK
TX
GA
FL
HI
raremost common

Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.