Sonnie vs Sonora
American parents have registered 1,630 Sonnies since 1880, against 1,444 Sonoras. But in 2025 it was Sonora that was commoner, 55 babies to 41.
Babies given each name, 1880–2025
Sonnie Sonora
Each line is every baby given the name that year, girls and boys added together — the only count that means the same thing for both names. A line breaks where the name fell below five babies in a year — the point at which the SSA stops publishing it — rather than being drawn through a figure nobody published. A single published year in a gap shows as a dot.
Who was ahead
Of the 116 years in which either name was published, Sonnie for 74 years and Sonora for 42 years. The lead changed hands 15 times.
- 1893–1963 Sonnie ahead, apart from 2 short spells
- 1964–1966 Sonora ahead
- 1967–1990 Sonnie ahead, apart from one short spell
- 1991–2025 Sonora ahead, apart from one short spell
8 shorter spells of a year or two are folded into the spans above rather than listed separately.
Side by side
| Sonnie | Sonora | |
|---|---|---|
| Total US births | 1,630 | 1,444 |
| Most in one year | 42 | 62 |
| Babies in 2025 | 41 | 55 |
| Estimated living today | 1,200 | 1,400 |
| Median age today | 31 | 14 |
| Peak year | 2023 | 2023 |
| Best rank | 4,610th boys | 2,757th girls |
| Rank in 2025 | 6,446th | 2,998th |
| First recorded | 1893 | 1924 |
| Girls / boys | 751 / 879 | 1,444 / 0 |
A rank is a position within one sex’s list for one year, so the two rank rows are not subtracted from one another and the winning column is not marked on them. The living figure is a life-table estimate, not a count.
Which name is older
Half of the Sonnies alive today are over 31; half the Sonoras are over 14. That is 17 years between them: two names in use at the same time, worn by two different generations.
Where each one is strongest
How much commoner the name is in that state than it is nationally, from births recorded since 1910.
Compare something else
Related comparisons
Social Security Administration birth records, 1880–2025, public domain. Full histories: Sonnie and Sonora.