Given name & surname · also Scandinavian
Brenda
“a princess; wielding a sword”·“born to royalty; a prince”
Brenda is a feminine form of Brendan. One Irish interpretation is “born to royalty; a prince.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In Irish use, Brenda carries the interpretation “a princess; wielding a sword.” Brenda is a feminine form of Brendan. One Irish interpretation is “born to royalty; a prince.”
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Scandinavian, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
Brenda is used as a feminine counterpart of Brendan.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1897. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Brenda through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 610,597
- 2,119 boys · 608,478 girls
- Most popular year
- 1957
- 24,395 babies
- 2025
- 139
- #1,527 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −30%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 139 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 1,527 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 30.0% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 24,339 in 1957. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (27). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 521,400 as a first name in 2020; 368 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Brenda’s family of names
Brenda is a feminine form of Brendan. Brenda has a related form in Brinda. Brenda has a related form in Brynda.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Brenda has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Irish roots to each of them.
4 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 11
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Brenclipped form
- Brindavariant
- Brenndalikely variant
- Brendvariant
- Brendolynvariant
- Brendalynnvariant
- Breandanvariant
- Bryndavariant
Show 3 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 6
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Brenda
- Brenda SongAmerican actress and model (born 1988)
- Brenda FrickerIrish actress (1945–2026)
- Brenda BlethynBritish actressborn 1946
- Brenda VaccaroAmerican actressborn 1939
- Brenda FassieSouth African pop singer (1964-2004)
- Brenda LeeAmerican singer and recording artist (born 1944)
- Brenda StrongAmerican actress (born 1960)
- Brenda MilnerCanada-based British neuroscientist and neuropsychologistborn 1918
- Crystal GayleAmerican country music singer (born 1951)
Characters named Brenda: Brenda Walsh (Beverly Hills, 90210 character), Brenda Leigh Johnson (Brenda Leigh Johnson guest appearance on "Major Crimes").
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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—
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