Given name & surname
Fern
“resembling a green shadeloving plant”
Fern is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “resembling a green shadeloving plant.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “resembling a green shadeloving plant.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Fern through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 38,195
- 529 boys · 37,666 girls
- Most popular year
- 1918
- 1,356 babies
- 2025
- 186
- #1,220 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +55%
- Rising fast
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 186 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 1,220 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 50.6% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,341 in 1918. In 2025, Oregon had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (15). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 9,341 as a first name in 2020; 2,224 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.
Fern’s family of names
Fern has a related form in Ferne. Fern has a related form in Furn. Fern has a related form in Furne.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 6
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
People named Fern
- Fern AndraAmerican actress (1893-1974)
- Fern Emmettactress (1896-1946)
- Fern HuntAmerican mathematicianborn 1948
- Fern SutherlandNew Zealand actressborn 1987
- Fern FitzgeraldAmerican actressborn 1947
- Fern PersonsAmerican actor, SAG/AFTRA activist (1910-2012)
- Fern WhelanEnglish footballer (born 1988)
- Fern HobbsAmerican lawyer1883–1964
- Fern KinneyAmerican female singerborn 2000
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Fern, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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