Ursula

Did you know?

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

⭐ Famous Ursula

Ursula Andress

Swiss actress

Choose Ursula and your child shares a first name with Ursula Andress, a Swiss actress. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Ursula, like who?” Ursula Andress's Wikipedia article is available in 68 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Ursula Andress on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: John Jason Junior, Public domain (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 55,556 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Ursula, 29 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Ursula would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryUrsula first shows up in US birth records in 1881, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 144 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1901, when it ranked #441. Today it's #4,661, so it could be due a comeback.
• 💬MeaningIn Latin, Ursula means “little bear”. Our records link it to German, Greek and Latin roots.

About the name Ursula

Ursula is a girl name of German, Greek and Latin origin meaning “little bear”. It has 6 letters and 3 syllables, starting with U and ending in “-ula”. US birth records list Ursula for girls from 1881 to 2025, in 145 of those 145 years. Its best year was 1901, when it ranked #441 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #4,661, with 29 babies.

Origin:German namesGreek namesLatin namesScandinavian names