Gretchen

German, diminutive of Margarethe

"pearl"

Gretchen Origin and Meaning

The name Gretchen is a girl's name of German origin meaning "pearl".

Like Greta, Gretchen is a German Margaret diminutive that has become an American quasi-classic, though not much used today, having dropped off the list in 2009. She was at her high point in the 1970s, making it into the top 200.

Gretchen appears in Goethe's Faust, and has been seen more recently on Heroes and Breaking Bad. The name is currently enjoying a dash of modern glamour via actress Gretchen Mol.

Gretchen Rank in US Top 1000

# 996 in the US

Gretchen Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 1186 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Gretchen

• 1186 Nameberry 2025

20 Names Similar to Gretchen

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Gretchen.

• Francine
• Georgette
• Darla
• Dora
• Wilma
• Marion
• Gillian
• Brigitte
• Bess
• Dinah
• Trudy
• Bessie
• Ginny
• Meg
• Connie
• Pauline
• Jean
• Alberta
• Gladys
• Mamie

Famous People Named Gretchen

• Gretchen Mol American actress
• Gretchen Craft Rubin American author and attorney
• Gretchen Frances Wilson American country singer
• Gretchen Elizabeth Carlson Miss America 1989
• Gretchen Christine Rossi American reality TV personality of "Real Housewives of Orange County"
• Gretchen Inga Geraghty American YouTuber
• Gretchen Barretto Filipina actress
• Gretchen Egolf American actress
• Gretchen stage name of Maria Odete Brito de Miranda, Brazilian celebrity
• Gretchen Esther Whitmer American politician from Michigan

The name Gretchen in Pop Culture

• Gretchen Weiners character in the movie "Mean Girls"
• Gretchen minor character in "Phineas and Ferb"
• Gretchen Priscilla Grundler one of the main characters on animated series "Recess"
• Greedy Gretchen character on TV's "Three's Company"
• Gretchen character in book series "The Popularity Papers"
• Gretchen Ross Jena Malone's character in "Donnie Darko"
• Gretchen Louise Morgan character in "Prison Break"
• Gretchen Berg from the TV show "Heroes"
• Gretchen a side character in cartoon "Bob's Burgers"
• Gretchen minor character on "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt"
• Gretchen Witter Pacey's sister on "Dawson's Creek"
• Gretchen Cutler main character on "You're the Worst"
• Gretchen character in Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy
• Gretchen character on TV's Weeds
• Gretchen Cutler a character from You're the Worst
• Gretchen Schwartz character on TV's Breaking Bad
• Gretchen character in the animated series “Invader Zim”
• Gretchen Mannkusser character from Malcolm in the Middle
• Gretchen character on animated series Camp Lazlo
• Gretchen Grietchelson character from Camp Lakebottom
• Gretchen Grimlock character in online game Poptropica.
• Kriemhild Gretchen the witch form of Madoka Kaname, a character in manga/anime Puella Magi Madoka Magica
• Gretchen Bodinski character on TV's Suits
• Gretchen a character in George Tabori's farce stage,adoptation of Hitler's Mein Kampf