| Eleanor | Alexandra | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Of uncertain origin, often “light” | Defender of the people |
| Origin | Greek | Greek |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EL-uh-ner | al-ig-ZAN-druh |
| Syllables | 3 | 4 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1894 |
| Peak year | 1920 (8,497) | 1993 (10,683) |
| In 2025 | 7,649 | 1,314 |
| Trend | Rising | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Eleanor | Alexandra |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 41,966 | 9,421 |
| 2010s | 40,129 | 30,971 |
| 2000s | 11,187 | 61,253 |
| 1990s | 4,871 | 94,806 |
| 1980s | 2,789 | 34,817 |
| 1970s | 2,750 | 6,960 |
| 1960s | 5,938 | 3,244 |
| 1950s | 11,065 | 1,598 |
| 1940s | 23,761 | 1,169 |
| 1930s | 46,379 | 444 |
| 1920s | 74,760 | 370 |
| 1910s | 54,163 | 327 |
| 1900s | 10,030 | 58 |
| 1890s | 4,754 | 13 |
| 1880s | 2,136 | 0 |
A name of debated origin, long associated with the Greek for “light” or “bright.” Borne by medieval queens.
Alexandra is the feminine of Alexander, from the Greek for “defender of the people.” It has long been a favourite among European royalty.
Eleanor is more popular than Alexandra today: about 7,649 US babies were given the name Eleanor in 2025, compared with 1,314 named Alexandra.
Eleanor means Of uncertain origin, often “light” (Greek origin), while Alexandra means Defender of the people (Greek origin).
In US records, Eleanor first appears in 1880 and Alexandra in 1894, so Eleanor has the longer recorded history.