Francisca is the Spanish and Portuguese feminine of Francis, from the Latin Franciscus, "Frenchman", which in turn goes back to the Franks and is often read as "free one". It has been a staple in Spain, Portugal and Latin America for centuries, often shortened to Paca or Chica. In the United States Francisca stood at number 1711 in 2000, its best rank of the period, and sits at number 2969 in 2025.