Girl name · Germanic
Genevieve
Name meaning, origin and popularity
: uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and womanGenevieve is a girl's name that comes from Germanic and means "uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and woman". It is used in English.
- Meaning
- Uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and woman
- Origin
- Germanic
- Gender
- Girl
- US rank
- #148 in 2025
Meaning and origin of Genevieve
As a girl's name, Genevieve comes from Germanic and means "uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and woman". It is used in English.
Meaning checked against Behind the Name. How we research names
Genevieve on Nomezo lists
What our editors wrote about Genevieve on 2 lists.
“The patron saint of Paris, for a refined girl”
From Female cat names, elegant female cat names
“French and elegant, with Evie for short”
From Girl dog names, feminine names for dogs
How popular is Genevieve?
- US rank in 2025
- #148
- 1,981 babies, 1,233 per million girls
- Best rank
- #76 in 1914
- Most babies: 3,304 in 1918
- Babies since 1880
- At least 125,131
- Years with under 5 are not listed
| 1880s | 829 per million |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 1,307 per million |
| 1900s | 1,808 per million |
| 1910s | 2,799 per million |
| 1920s | 2,073 per million |
| 1930s | 909 per million |
| 1940s | 354 per million |
| 1950s | 165 per million |
| 1960s | 139 per million |
| 1970s | 235 per million |
| 1980s | 277 per million |
| 1990s | 254 per million |
| 2000s | 445 per million |
| 2010s | 894 per million |
| 2020s | 1,118 per million |
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #188 | #183 | #171 | #168 | #169 | #154 | #165 | #165 | #165 | #148 |
Source: US Social Security Administration baby-name data, 1880 to 2025, as published in 2026. Each spelling is counted separately, a name given to fewer than 5 babies of one sex in a year is left out, and few people born before 1937 have records, which is why the chart shows babies per million rather than raw counts.
Names with a similar meaning
- MiriamForm of Mary, meaning uncertain; perhaps Egyptian beloved (Hebrew, girl)
- JulianaFeminine form of Julian, from the Roman family name Julius (Latin, girl)
- AlanMeaning uncertain; perhaps little rock, or from the Alans (Brythonic, boy)
- IngaNamed for Ing, a Germanic god (Old Norse, girl)
- JulianFrom the Roman name Julianus, from the family name Julius (Latin, boy)
- KennethAnglicized Coinneach, handsome, and Cináed, perhaps born of fire (Scottish Gaelic, boy)
- MarianaFeminine of Marianus, from the Roman family name Marius (Latin, girl)
- SamanthaPerhaps a feminine form of Samuel with the suffix antha (English, girl)
- TatianaFrom the Roman family name Tatius (Latin, girl)
- VirginiaMaiden, from a Roman family name (Latin, girl)
- AntonellaPet form of Antonia, from the Roman family name Antonius (Latin, girl)
- AresPerhaps from Greek words for bane, ruin, or male (Greek, boy)
- ArthurOf uncertain Celtic origin (Celtic, boy)
- JasperPerhaps treasurer, from Gaspar, one of the Magi (Persian, boy)
- MariaGreek and Latin form of Miriam, of uncertain meaning (Hebrew, girl)
Middle names for Genevieve
Picked from our middle-name lists with a different first letter and a shorter length, so the full name flows.
More girl names from Germanic
- EmmaWhole, universal (Germanic, girl)
- AlinaShort form of Adelina, Albina and names ending in -alina (Germanic, girl)
- AliceNobility, of noble kind (Germanic, girl)
- CharlotteFree man, feminine of Charles (Germanic, girl)
- LouiseFamous warrior (Germanic, girl)
- AdaNoble (Germanic, girl)
- AdelaNoble (Germanic, girl)
- AdeleNoble one (Germanic, girl)
- AmeliaPossibly vigorous, brave (Germanic, girl)
- BertaBright, famous (Germanic, girl)
- CarlaFree man, feminine of Charles (Germanic, girl)
- CarolineFree man, feminine of Charles (Germanic, girl)
- HildaBattle, combat (Germanic, girl)
- MatildaStrength in battle (Germanic, girl)
- RicardaBrave ruler (Germanic, girl)
- RobertaBright fame (Germanic, girl)
- BernadetteBrave bear (Germanic, girl)
- CarolinaFree man, feminine of Charles (Germanic, girl)
Genevieve: common questions
What does the name Genevieve mean?
Genevieve comes from Germanic and means "uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and woman". Checked against Behind the Name.
Is Genevieve a boy or girl name?
Genevieve is mainly a girl's name.
Where does the name Genevieve come from?
Genevieve comes from Germanic and means "uncertain; perhaps from Germanic family and woman". Today it is used in English.
How popular is the name Genevieve?
Genevieve ranked #148 in the US in 2025, with 1,981 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.
What middle names go with Genevieve?
Middle names that flow well with Genevieve include Amber, Dawn, Faith, Hazel and Holly. A different first letter and a contrasting length usually sound best.