Girl's name
Francesca
Say it fran-CHES-kuh
Italian origin French(man)
3 syllables
Where Francesca is loved, common and rare
Common in Italy. Rare in the UK, Canada, three German cities and six more places.
1 in 584 girls born in England and Wales in 2025
Italy 36thEngland and Wales 107thScotland 191st
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 16 of the 40 official lists, among them Italy (36th), England and Wales (107th) and Scotland (191st).
Show all 16 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 36th 2024 | 996 | 1 in 180 |
| England and Wales | 107th 2025 | 434 | 1 in 584 |
| Scotland | 191st 2025 | 21 | 1 in 852 |
| Northern Ireland | 205th 2025 | 8 | 1 in 911 |
| British Columbia province | 223rd 2023 | 14 | about 1 in 854 |
| Ontario province | 418th 2024 | 30 | about 1 in 1,816 |
| Cologne city | 419th 2023 | 2 | about 1 in 3,072 |
| Ireland | 443rd 2025 | 8 | 1 in 2,641 |
| Poland | 498th 2025 | 4 | 1 in 29,947 |
| Quebec province | 540th 2025 | 8 | about 1 in 3,250 |
| Catalonia region | 604th 2025 | 4 | 1 in 4,818 |
| Switzerland | 720th 2025 | 8 | 1 in 4,249 |
| Austria | 742nd 2025 | 5 | 1 in 7,144 |
| Berlin city | 937th 2023 | 2 | about 1 in 7,252 |
| France | 981st 2025 | 35 | 1 in 8,194 |
| Bonn city | 249th 2025 | 2 | about 1 in 1,508 |
Rare, below the listed names: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Munich, Leipzig, Rostock, Norway, Sweden, Spain, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); NISRA (Northern Ireland); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); Idescat (Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya) (Catalonia); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); Bundesstadt Bonn, Standesamt (opendata.bonn.de) (Bonn). How we count, and every source
About the name
As the feminine of Francesco, the Italian Francis, Francesca is the same name as Francis in a feminine form and shares its meaning, 'French' or 'Frenchman'. It goes back to Late Latin Franciscus, built on Francia, 'France', with a suffix meaning '-ish'. Frances and Francisca are doublets from the same root.
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It has three syllables, said fran-CHES-kuh, with the stress in the middle. Fran is an easy short form taken from the name itself. Franchesca is a phonetic spelling, and Franziska, Franciszka and Françoise are relatives.
Italy is where it is most common, as a top-40 name. It is also used in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as in Switzerland and Austria. In France it peaked around 2007, and it is rising in more places than it is falling.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- fran-CHES-kuh, 3 syllables
- Meaning
French(man)
- Origin
- Italian
- Other spellings
- Frances
- Franchesca
- Franziska
- Franka
- Franciszka
- Francisca
- Françoise
- Franca
- Franciska
- Frančiška
- Františka
- Francka
- Soizic
- Paquita
- Franceska
- Paca
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian Francesca (“Frances”), the feminine form of Francesco (“Francis”), from Late Latin Franciscus, from Francia (“France”) + -iscus (“-ish”). Doublet of Frances and Francisca.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 6 of 13 regions, falling in 3.
Show the yearsShow less
Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 88 | 89 | 93 | 106 | 112 | 110 | 118 | 117 | 102 | 107 |
| Scotland | 196 | 191 | 200 | 168 | 170 | 198 | 303 | 210 | 152 | 191 |
| Northern Ireland | 276 | 239 | 273 | 263 | 333 | 266 | 218 | 264 | 227 | 205 |
| Ireland | 335 | 651 | 361 | 296 | 375 | 299 | 634 | 316 | 342 | 443 |
| Ontario | 402 | 375 | 469 | 488 | 568 | 419 | 339 | 413 | 418 | |
| British Columbia | 513 | 369 | 283 | 409 | 390 | 398 | 316 | 223 | ||
| South Australia | 230 | 558 | ||||||||
| Quebec | 956 | 799 | 730 | 630 | 612 | 540 | ||||
| France | 921 | 856 | 945 | 1227 | 839 | 1106 | 1071 | 1303 | 1013 | 981 |
| Austria | 549 | 1048 | 1024 | 1310 | 1291 | 1876 | 752 | 825 | 872 | 742 |
| Switzerland | 309 | 515 | 603 | 430 | 445 | 737 | 469 | 581 | 560 | 720 |
| Berlin | 847 | 1007 | 978 | 437 | 969 | 937 | ||||
| Cologne | 316 | 288 | 918 | 684 | 320 | 649 | 419 | |||
| Catalonia | 471 | 534 | 485 | 541 | 628 | 480 | 522 | 604 | ||
| Italy | 19 | 20 | 25 | 23 | 25 | 30 | 31 | 35 | 36 | |
| Poland | 264 | 335 | 355 | 389 | 377 | 388 | 440 | 380 | 396 | 498 |
| Argentina | 11 | 16 | 16 | 20 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 107 | 434 | 171.4 |
| 2024 | 102 | 455 | 176.4 |
| 2023 | 117 | 419 | 163.3 |
| 2022 | 118 | 441 | 167.4 |
| 2021 | 110 | 466 | 170.0 |
| 2020 | 112 | 459 | 171.0 |
| 2019 | 106 | 491 | 175.3 |
| 2018 | 93 | 567 | 196.7 |
| 2017 | 89 | 600 | 200.6 |
| 2016 | 88 | 611 | 198.9 |
| 2015 | 83 | 661 | 214.7 |
| 2014 | 87 | 646 | 210.7 |
| 2013 | 81 | 679 | 220.1 |
| 2012 | 90 | 622 | 193.1 |
| 2011 | 99 | 602 | 187.4 |
| 2010 | 102 | 580 | 180.7 |
| 2009 | 98 | 598 | 190.8 |
| 2008 | 92 | 613 | 194.1 |
| 2007 | 89 | 620 | 202.5 |
| 2006 | 85 | 677 | 226.2 |
| 2005 | 75 | 700 | 242.8 |
| 2004 | 79 | 647 | 226.3 |
| 2003 | 80 | 633 | 227.2 |
| 2002 | 88 | 599 | 224.0 |
| 2001 | 76 | 695 | 259.3 |
| 2000 | 67 | 757 | 277.1 |
| 1999 | 56 | 921 | 327.0 |
| 1998 | 53 | 1,052 | 363.8 |
| 1997 | 60 | 975 | 332.6 |
| 1996 | 62 | 966 | 326.4 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
France since 1925
Half of the babies named Francesca in France since 1925 were born in or after 1992. First recorded in 1925. Her peak year there: 2007, at 23.9 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Francesca per 100,000 girls born in France, by five-year period. Her 2007 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (1900-2025), Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0.
Sister names for Francesca
1 in 778 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 1,111 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 1,193 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 1,921 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 898 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 778 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 486 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 320 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 1,214 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
1 in 2,982 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Francesca.
Middle names for Francesca
1 in 107 in Northern Ireland
Francesca Charlotte
3-2 beats · initials FC
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 2 syllables.
1 in 86 in Ireland
Francesca Sophie
3-2 beats · initials FS
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 2 syllables.
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Francesca Grace
3-1 beats · initials FG
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Francesca Olivia
3-4 beats · initials FO · Francesca slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 4 syllables. Francesca slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 102 in Ireland
Francesca Mia
3-2 beats · initials FM
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 2 syllables.
1 in 132 in Northern Ireland
Francesca Ruby
3-2 beats · initials FR
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 2 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Francesca Rose
3-1 beats · initials FR
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 173 in Northern Ireland
Francesca Nora
3-2 beats · initials FN
Changes the beat after Francesca: 3 syllables, then 2 syllables.
Same style as Francesca
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
92% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 660 in Ireland
92% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 1,921 in Ireland
91% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 778 in Scotland
90% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 1,214 in Northern Ireland
90% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 221 in Scotland
90% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 128 in Northern Ireland
90% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
1 in 596 in Scotland
90% alike: moves with Francesca across countries and decades.
Famous people named Francesca
Francesca Schiavone, Francesca Albanese, Francesca Michielin, Francesca Caccini, Francesca Neri, Francesca da Rimini, Francesca Lollobrigida and Francesca Woodman.
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Italian tennis player born 1980
-
Italian lawyer and academic (born 1977), independent United Nations human rights expert
-
Italian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born 1995
-
Italian composer 1587 to 1641
-
Italian actress born 1964
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Italian noble woman 1259 to 1285
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Italian ice speed skater and roller speed skater born 1991
-
American photographer (1958 - 1981)
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Francesca
5 questions, on how popular she is, what it means, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
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How popular is Francesca?
Her best rank is No. 36 in Italy in 2024, about 1 in 180 girls. She is in the published lists of 16 of our 40 regions.
What does Francesca mean?
Wiktionary glosses Francesca as "French(man)".
How do you pronounce Francesca?
fran-CHES-kuh, with 3 syllables.
Is Francesca getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 6 of 13 regions, falling in 3.
Which sister names go with Francesca?
The deck's top five sisters for Francesca: Gabriella, Liliana, Leila, Joanna and Cecilia. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.