Given name
Sadako
“the pure one”
Sadako is a variant of Sada. One Japanese interpretation is “the pure one.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Sadako is a variant of Sada. One Japanese interpretation is “the pure one.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Sadako is a variant of Sada. An origin associated with Sada is Japanese.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1913. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Sadako through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 349
- 0 boys · 349 girls
- Most popular year
- 1924
- 25 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 1940. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 307 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Sadako’s family of names
Sadako has a related form in Sada. In Japanese usage, Sadako is a Roman-alphabet rendering of さだこ. In English usage, Sadako was borrowed from the Japanese form さだこ.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
People named Sadako
- Sadako SasakiJapanese origami artist1943–1955
- Sadako OgataJapanese diplomat, political scientist and university teacher (1927–2019)
- Empress TeimeiJapanese empress consort (1884–1951)
- Fujiwara no TeishiJapanese empress consort of Emperor Ichijō977–1001
- Sadako KuriharaJapanese poet1913–2005
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Sadako, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Miyoko
“a beautiful daughter”
>99% girls
Santina
>99% girls
Annamae
>99% girls
Sallie
“princess; lady” · “princess”
>99% girls
Cecile
Cecile is a feminine given name from French, ultimately from Latin. It is used in English, Cebuano, and Old French.
>99% girls
Antoinette
“a flourishing man; from an ancient Roman family”
>99% girls
Adelene
Adelene is a feminine given name.
>99% girls
Concetta
“refers to the Immaculate Conception”
>99% girls