girl's name
Magnolia
mag-NOH-lee-uh
- Origin Latin
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 3
- Letters 8
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 24,090
the United States
#124
2025 births
Magnolia is a girl's name naming the flowering tree, which was named after Pierre Magnol, a seventeenth-century French botanist. So the name honors a person at one remove, by way of a plant genus named in his memory.
- Magnolia is a name of Latin origin.
- Peaked in 2025, when 2,233 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,485 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Magnolia 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 | 105 |
| 1890s | 207 |
| 1900s | 479 |
| 1910s | 1,101 |
| 1920s | 1,181 |
| 1930s | 671 |
| 1940s | 499 |
| 1950s | 303 |
| 1960s | 153 |
| 1970s | 149 |
| 1980s | 131 |
| 1990s | 271 |
| 2000s | 909 |
| 2010s | 5,429 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 11,815 |
What Magnolia means
Magnolia names the tree, and the tree honors Pierre Magnol. The surname Magnol most likely derives from the Latin magnus, meaning great, so the deeper sense is greatness — arrived at through a botanist rather than directly.
Where Magnolia comes from
Magnolia was coined by the botanist Charles Plumier, who named the genus after Pierre Magnol, director of the botanical garden at Montpellier and one of the first to group plants into families. Linnaeus adopted the name, fixing it in scientific use. Magnolias are among the oldest flowering plants in the fossil record, predating bees, and are thought to have evolved for pollination by beetles. In American usage the tree carries strong Southern associations — it is the state flower of both Mississippi and Louisiana. The name's use for people is recent and part of the wider botanical revival.
Magnolia in use
Magnolias predate bees in the fossil record and are thought to have evolved for beetle pollination.
How popular is Magnolia?
In 2025, Magnolia was given to 2,233 babies in the United States, ranking #124 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Magnolia 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 Magnolia
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Magnolia also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Magnolia over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
2 nicknames for Magnolia
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.
Sibling names for Magnolia
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Magnolia — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Magnolia
What does the name Magnolia mean?
It names the flowering tree, which honors the French botanist Pierre Magnol.
Who was Pierre Magnol?
A seventeenth-century botanist at Montpellier, among the first to group plants into families.
What are nicknames for Magnolia?
Maggie and Nola are the most common short forms.
How popular is the name Magnolia?
In 2025, Magnolia was given to 2,233 babies in the United States, ranking #124 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Magnolia a girl's or a boy's name?
Magnolia is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Magnolia?
Magnolia has 3 syllables.
When was Magnolia most popular?
Magnolia peaked in 2025, when 2,233 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Magnolia a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Magnolia currently ranks #124 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.