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Home › Baby Names Directory › Pamela

Pamela

♀ Girl

Pronounced PAM-uh-luh /ˈpæm.ə.lə/Medium

Meaning: All sweetnessMedium

In 30 seconds: Pamela means 'all sweetness', a literary coinage built from Greek roots that became a lasting first name.
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Origin MediumEnglish
MeaningAll sweetness
U.S. rank (2025)#2251 ↘ Falling
2025 U.S. births82 girls (0.01% of U.S. girls)
Peak year1954
Total births (all-time)≈ 595,074

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 195418952025

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Pamela carries the meaning 'all sweetness', drawn from Greek elements suggesting 'all' and 'honey'. Once a name invented in literature, it settled into everyday use and spread through spellings like Pamelia, Pamella, and the accented Pâmela and Paméla. Actress Pamela Tiffin, a Golden Globe nominee in the early 1960s, helped keep it familiar on screen.

The name's even three-beat flow suits both formal and casual settings, and bearers like Pamela Reed, Leslie Knope's mother on Parks and Recreation, kept it in the public ear across decades.

Did you know? The meaning usually attached to Pamela is 'all sweetness', and that core idea is what gives the name most of its long-term appeal.
Overall data confidence 78%
Behind the Name - Pamela — etymology, usage, pronunciation, and related formsU.S. Social Security Administration — 2024 popularity rank and count supplied in the batch input CSV

Variations

PameliaPamellaPamilaPâmelaPaméla

Nicknames

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Famous Bearers

  • ★Pamela Tiffin (1942–2020)
    American actress, Golden Globe nominee for One, Two, Three (1961) and Summer and Smoke.
  • ★Pamela Reed (1949–present)
    American actress known for Kindergarten Cop and as Leslie Knope's mother on Parks and Recreation.

If you like Pamela…

Louella— a fellow English choice
Adella— a similarly popular pick
Enola— shares the -la ending
Calla— a similarly popular pick
Tyla— shares Pamela's English roots

Explore names like Pamela

By themeenglish

All themes →All meanings →All origins →

Frequently Asked

What does the name Pamela mean?

Pamela is usually explained as meaning 'all sweetness' and is most often linked with English tradition.

How do you pronounce Pamela?

It's commonly said PAM-uh-luh /ˈpæm.ə.lə/.

Is Pamela a boy or girl name?

In this batch and in recent U.S. usage data, Pamela is used as a girl name.

How popular is Pamela?

In 2024, Pamela ranked #2161 in the U.S. for girls, with 88 births recorded.

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