Vanessa is a distinctive girls' name in England & Wales, ranking #533 in 2024 with 73 recorded births. The name reached its all-time peak in 2010 with 228 births ranking #220. Since 1996, the popularity has decreased by 65.7%. In 2024, approximately 1 in every 3,534 girls born was named Vanessa. STABLE Recent data shows the name is currently stable.
Vanessa is a graceful literary name with a long-established modern history. It feels polished and familiar, even though it began as an invented form rather than an ancient traditional name.
Created in the eighteenth century by Jonathan Swift, Vanessa later became widely used and fully naturalised as a girls' name. Its success shows how literary inventions can become real classics.