| Belle | Ines | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Beautiful | Pure, holy |
| Origin | french | French |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | BEL | ee-NESS |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| First appeared | 0 | 1883 |
| Peak year | 1915 (407) | 2025 (213) |
| In 2025 | 0 | 213 |
| Trend | Vintage | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Belle | Ines |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,522 | 890 |
| 2010s | 2,405 | 949 |
| 2000s | 1,297 | 761 |
| 1990s | 392 | 522 |
| 1980s | 112 | 335 |
| 1970s | 171 | 359 |
| 1960s | 261 | 379 |
| 1950s | 398 | 255 |
| 1940s | 429 | 217 |
| 1930s | 538 | 410 |
| 1920s | 1,545 | 761 |
| 1910s | 2,901 | 605 |
| 1900s | 2,096 | 186 |
| 1890s | 2,512 | 104 |
| 1880s | 2,648 | 18 |
The French word belle 'beautiful', feminine of beau, from Latin bellus. Used as a given name meaning 'beautiful' and also a short form of names like Isabelle/Annabelle.
Inès is a French and Spanish form of Agnes, “pure” or “holy.”
Ines is more popular than Belle today: about 213 US babies were given the name Ines in 2025, compared with 0 named Belle.
Belle means Beautiful (french origin), while Ines means Pure, holy (French origin).
In US records, Belle first appears in 0 and Ines in 1883, so Belle has the longer recorded history.