Vannessa
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- va-NESS-a
- Origin
- English
Vannessa is a girls' name of English origin. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Vannessa mean?
English: spelling of Vanessa; literary coinage by Jonathan Swift
Coined by Jonathan Swift in his poem Cadenus and Vanessa from his friend Esther Vanhomrigh's name; it is also a butterfly genus.
Meaning borrowed from Vanessa. More on Wiktionary.
Is Vannessa a girl's or a boy's name?
Vannessa is a girls' name.
How popular is Vannessa in the US?
No girls in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 1987, with 123 girls. It first appears in the records in 1951.
Half of all the girls named Vannessa in the US since 1880 were born between 1972 and 1996, the years shaded on the chart below.
Vannessa in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 6 | #13,586 |
| 2021 | 6 | #13,459 |
| 2020 | 9 | #10,245 |
| 2019 | 8 | #11,350 |
| 2018 | 5 | #15,677 |
| 2017 | 9 | #10,685 |
| 2016 | 11 | #9,408 |
| 2015 | 11 | #9,476 |
| 2014 | 13 | #8,480 |
| 2013 | 14 | #8,131 |
| 2012 | 17 | #7,140 |
| 2011 | 31 | #4,567 |
| 2010 | 23 | #5,769 |
| 2009 | 38 | #4,012 |
| 2008 | 42 | #3,778 |
| 2007 | 42 | #3,785 |
| 2006 | 41 | #3,733 |
| 2005 | 40 | #3,642 |
| 2004 | 43 | #3,440 |
| 2003 | 42 | #3,408 |
| 2002 | 41 | #3,330 |
| 2001 | 38 | #3,482 |
| 2000 | 61 | #2,476 |
| 1999 | 69 | #2,179 |
| 1998 | 50 | #2,688 |
| 1997 | 73 | #1,961 |
| 1996 | 67 | #2,056 |
| 1995 | 69 | #1,977 |
| 1994 | 69 | #2,021 |
| 1993 | 98 | #1,567 |
| 1992 | 90 | #1,669 |
| 1991 | 102 | #1,511 |
| 1990 | 98 | #1,553 |
| 1989 | 116 | #1,330 |
| 1988 | 110 | #1,313 |
| 1987 | 123 | #1,182 |
| 1986 | 90 | #1,420 |
| 1985 | 70 | #1,665 |
| 1984 | 52 | #1,960 |
| 1983 | 59 | #1,797 |
| 1982 | 52 | #1,991 |
| 1981 | 45 | #2,231 |
| 1980 | 44 | #2,246 |
| 1979 | 51 | #1,998 |
| 1978 | 45 | #2,092 |
| 1977 | 51 | #1,922 |
| 1976 | 27 | #2,791 |
| 1975 | 31 | #2,516 |
| 1974 | 33 | #2,348 |
| 1973 | 18 | #3,480 |
| 1972 | 32 | #2,311 |
| 1971 | 38 | #2,137 |
| 1970 | 27 | #2,647 |
| 1969 | 41 | #1,955 |
| 1968 | 14 | #3,609 |
| 1967 | 20 | #2,781 |
| 1966 | 29 | #2,190 |
| 1965 | 23 | #2,537 |
| 1964 | 43 | #1,780 |
| 1963 | 34 | #2,014 |
| 1962 | 44 | #1,707 |
| 1961 | 59 | #1,453 |
| 1960 | 59 | #1,429 |
| 1959 | 55 | #1,449 |
| 1958 | 57 | #1,408 |
| 1957 | 42 | #1,651 |
| 1956 | 43 | #1,616 |
| 1955 | 59 | #1,308 |
| 1954 | 44 | #1,517 |
| 1953 | 46 | #1,438 |
| 1952 | 23 | #2,125 |
| 1951 | 6 | #4,832 |
Nicknames for Vannessa
Names like Vannessa
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Vanessa, Melissa, Samantha, Jessica, Amanda, Cassandra, Miranda, Alana, Sabrina, Bianca, Angela, Kimberly
Names related to Vannessa
More English names
Lily, Evelyn, Hudson, Ivy, Harper, Grace, Violet, Willow, Daisy, Poppy, Riley, Oakley, Mason, Cooper, Ruby, Hallie
Sources
Figures from 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, “Vannessa: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/vannessa, updated 20 October 2026.