Greta

Did you know?

A few things about Greta you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Greta

Greta Garbo

Swedish-American actress (1905–1990)

Choose Greta and your child shares a first name with Greta Garbo, a Swedish-American actress. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Greta, like who?” Greta Garbo's Wikipedia article is available in 116 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Greta Garbo on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (work for hire), Public domain (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 5,522 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Greta, 291 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Greta would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryGreta first shows up in US birth records in 1885, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 140 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIts best year was 1932, when it reached #317.
• 🍂TrendGreta has slipped 169 places over the last five years and now sits at #908. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 📍Where it's lovedGreta is most popular in Minnesota, where it ranks #130, followed by Wisconsin (#326) and Kansas (#361). It's in the top 1,000 in 13 states.
• 💬MeaningGreta is a German form of Margaret, which means “pearl”.

About the name Greta

Greta is a girl name meaning “pearl”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with G and ending in “-eta”. US birth records list Greta for girls from 1885 to 2025, in 141 of those 141 years. Its best year was 1932, when it ranked #317 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #908, with 291 babies.