Gail vs Isabella
How Gail and Isabella compare across 146 years of US Social Security Administration baby-name records — popularity history, peak years, current rank, and which name overtook which.
US Popularity History — Side-by-Side
Annual US births named Gail (girls) vs Isabella (girls), from US Social Security Administration national records.
Source: US Social Security Administration. Names appearing fewer than 5 times per year are suppressed by SSA.
Quick Stats
| Metric | Gail | Isabella |
|---|---|---|
| Peak year (most US births) | 1951 — 9,886 girls | 2010 — 22,935 girls |
| Peak rank | #36 | #1 |
| Most recent rank (1961) | #94 (4,972 births) | #7 (10,666 births) |
| Total US births since 1880 | 158,358 | 396,589 |
| Last 10 years (1952–1961) | 77,779 | 125,637 |
Peak comparison takeaway
At its all-time peak, Isabella reached 22,935 US births in 2010 — 13,049 more than Gail's peak count.
Crossover Years
Years where one name first passed the other in annual US births. A name "winning" in a year means it had more births that year, not necessarily a higher rank.
| Year | New leader | Gail births | Isabella births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Isabella | 0 | 3,851 |
Strongest States — Last 10 Years
States where each name ranked highest, from SSA's state-level dataset. Lower average rank = name appears closer to the top of that state's girls-name list.
Gail — top 5 states
| # | State | Avg rank | Births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii | #57 | 201 |
| 2 | Rhode Island | #61 | 390 |
| 3 | New Hampshire | #70 | 189 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | #70 | 1,821 |
| 5 | Connecticut | #70 | 731 |
Isabella — top 5 states
| # | State | Avg rank | Births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida | #2 | 10,088 |
| 2 | Nevada | #3 | 1,227 |
| 3 | Texas | #4 | 15,128 |
| 4 | New Mexico | #4 | 680 |
| 5 | Arizona | #4 | 2,998 |
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Data & methodology
Source: US Social Security Administration national baby names dataset 1880–2025 (CC0 public domain). Names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a given year are suppressed by SSA. State-level coverage runs 1910–2025. Crossover detection compares annual birth counts (not ranks) for each year both names appear. Methodology: see full notes. More comparisons →