girl's name
Bertha
BER-thuh
- Origin Germanic
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 210,854
Ireland
#402
1966 births
Bertha is a girl's name from a Germanic word meaning bright, and it was Charlemagne's mother's name. Its twentieth-century decline owes something to Big Bertha, the German siege howitzer of 1914 that borrowed it.
- Bertha is a name of Germanic origin.
- Peaked in 1918, when 5,065 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 110,522 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Bertha over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 18,351 |
| 1890s | 25,224 |
| 1900s | 24,363 |
| 1910s | 40,250 |
| 1920s | 38,754 |
| 1930s | 21,403 |
| 1940s | 16,309 |
| 1950s | 11,293 |
| 1960s | 5,859 |
| 1970s | 2,717 |
| 1980s | 1,692 |
| 1990s | 1,400 |
| 2000s | 686 |
| 2010s | 330 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 176 |
What Bertha means
Bertha means bright, or famous. The Germanic element names renown as a kind of shining, and it is one of the most productive parts in the whole naming system.
Where Bertha comes from
Bertha is the Germanic beraht, bright or famous — the element that ends Albert, Herbert, Gilbert, Robert and Norbert and begins Bertram. Bertha of Laon, called Bertha Broadfoot, was Charlemagne's mother, and the French phrase for the good old days, du temps où Berthe filait, means from when Bertha spun. The name's modern fate was shaped by artillery: the 42-centimetre howitzer Krupp built in 1914 was nicknamed Dicke Bertha, Big Bertha, after Bertha Krupp, and the association attached itself to the name in English just as it was already fading.
Bertha in use
Bertha peaked in the United States in 1918, when 5,065 babies were registered, and our data marks it stable rather than falling — though the level is very low. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 4570th in the United States on 30 births, across 210,854 lifetime births. Its 1918 peak coincides almost exactly with the guns that carried its name into English as a byword for size.
How popular is Bertha?
In 2025, Bertha was given to 30 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Bertha is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Bertha
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Bertha also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Bertha over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Bertha
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Bertha in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Bertha
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Bertha — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Bertha
What does the name Bertha mean?
Bright or famous, from the Germanic beraht — the element in Albert, Herbert and Robert.
Is Big Bertha named after the name?
After a person — the 1914 Krupp howitzer was nicknamed for Bertha Krupp, and the association attached to the name.
Was Charlemagne's mother called Bertha?
Yes — Bertha of Laon, called Bertha Broadfoot.
How popular is Bertha?
4570th in the United States on 30 births.
Is Bertha a girl's or a boy's name?
Bertha is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Bertha?
Bertha has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Bertha?
Bertha is usually shortened to Bertie.
Is Bertha a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Bertha currently ranks #4,570 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.