NamelingSwipe names

Imelda

Gender
Girl
Say it
i-MEL-da
Origin
Germanic
UK rank, 2025
#2,856 for girls
US rank, 2025
#4,264 for girls

Imelda is a girls' name of Germanic origin, meaning “great battle”. In 2025 it ranked 2,856th for girls in the UK (9 babies) and 4,264th for girls in the US (33 babies).

What does Imelda mean?

Germanic: Italian and Spanish form of Germanic Irmhild

“great battle”

Blessed Imelda Lambertini, a 14th-century girl from Bologna, is the patron of first communicants.

More on Wiktionary.

Is Imelda a girl's or a boy's name?

Imelda is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 9 girls in the UK and 33 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.

How popular is Imelda in the UK?

Rank in 2025
2,856th among girls
Babies in 2025
9 about 1 in 31,000 girls
Five-year trend
Steady down 16% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 9 girls in the UK were named Imelda, making it the 2,856th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,708th. Its busiest year was 2017, with 20 girls.

Half of all the girls named Imelda in the UK since 1996 were born between 2014 and 2021, the years shaded on the chart below.

Among girls in 2025, it was 2,786th in England and Wales.

1997Busiest: 20 in 20172025
Imelda in the UK, year by year
YearGirlsRank
20259#2,856
202413#2,175
202315#1,955
20226#3,728
202114#2,069
202018#1,708
201919#1,651
20187#3,344
201720#1,647
201611#2,510
201510#2,629
20149#2,809
20136#3,719
20129#2,887
201112#2,265
20100–
20094#4,795
20080–
20070–
20060–
20050–
20040–
20030–
20023#4,284
20010–
20003#4,074
19993#4,041
19980–
19973#3,991

How popular is Imelda in the US?

Rank in 2025
4,264th among girls
Babies in 2025
33 about 1 in 49,000 girls
Five-year trend
Steady down 2% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 girls

In 2025, 33 girls in the US were named Imelda, making it the 4,264th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 3,606th. Its busiest year was 1978, with 149 girls. It first appears in the records in 1891.

Half of all the girls named Imelda in the US since 1880 were born between 1945 and 1988, the years shaded on the chart below.

1891Busiest: 149 in 19782025
Imelda in the US, year by year
YearGirlsRank
202533#4,264
202442#3,639
202332#4,361
202233#4,293
202139#3,800
202041#3,606
201930#4,545
201838#3,852
201732#4,383
201635#4,156
201519#6,450
201424#5,454
201327#5,011
201233#4,385
201123#5,725
201025#5,412
200935#4,268
200841#3,858
200749#3,376
200658#2,939
200555#2,931
200450#3,067
200355#2,797
200242#3,279
200168#2,327
200057#2,589
199948#2,809
199872#2,045
199769#2,042
199659#2,250
199589#1,647
199465#2,097
199375#1,878
199295#1,611
199188#1,671
199088#1,666
198990#1,560
198861#1,964
198774#1,646
198681#1,515
198571#1,649
198480#1,446
198391#1,319
1982110#1,213
1981120#1,139
1980119#1,141
1979105#1,232
1978149#947
1977138#987
1976137#936
1975137#931
1974127#969
1973130#934
1972103#1,096
1971141#919
1970116#1,052
196999#1,109
196894#1,099
196776#1,219
196677#1,225
196577#1,226
196460#1,462
196380#1,226
196267#1,350
196178#1,252
196078#1,235
195967#1,305
195880#1,188
195786#1,134
195663#1,311
195576#1,141
195454#1,366
195365#1,198
195259#1,235
195157#1,223
195059#1,199
194948#1,322
194859#1,172
194761#1,149
194642#1,336
194534#1,373
194425#1,660
194332#1,466
194237#1,325
194140#1,184
194034#1,272
193937#1,194
193863#890
193732#1,282
193649#979
193541#1,084
193438#1,148
193348#999
193250#998
193150#984
193068#867
192953#994
192879#805
192764#935
192672#873
192554#1,020
192455#1,046
192360#953
192249#1,089
192161#946
192050#1,048
191961#902
191857#948
191766#841
191663#856
191555#885
191444#878
191335#901
191227#978
191132#766
191017#1,069
190919#935
19089#1,439
19077#1,638
19067#1,553
190512#1,093
19046#1,658
19038#1,318
19029#1,219
190115#857
190013#1,052
18998#1,180
189813#963
18970–
18960–
18957#1,299
18940–
18930–
18920–
18915#1,332

Names like Imelda

Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.

Maria, Rosa, Matilda, Sara, Aurora, Ada, Lola, Elena, Alba, Ivy-Rose, Diana, Ida

More Germanic names

Amelia, Liam, Henry, Charlotte, William, Archie, Charlie, Emma, Freddie, Ella, Harry, Millie, Albie, Louie, Miles, Alice

Every Germanic name

Sources

Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.

To cite this page: Nameling, “Imelda: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/imelda, updated 20 October 2026.