| Ella | Gertrude | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | All; fairy maiden | Spear of strength |
| Origin | Germanic | germanic |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EL-uh | GUR-trood |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2010 (9,884) | 1917 (6,300) |
| In 2025 | 5,831 | 0 |
| Trend | Declining | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Ella | Gertrude |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 37,920 | 171 |
| 2010s | 85,922 | 236 |
| 2000s | 67,544 | 135 |
| 1990s | 3,897 | 102 |
| 1980s | 1,576 | 188 |
| 1970s | 2,096 | 380 |
| 1960s | 5,176 | 1,250 |
| 1950s | 11,038 | 3,936 |
| 1940s | 15,977 | 7,936 |
| 1930s | 19,962 | 16,137 |
| 1920s | 29,521 | 42,459 |
| 1910s | 24,913 | 49,565 |
| 1900s | 14,763 | 23,607 |
| 1890s | 17,072 | 19,898 |
| 1880s | 13,936 | 11,100 |
From a Germanic root meaning “all” or “other,” and also read in Norman use as “fairy maiden.”
From Germanic 'ger' (spear) and 'thrud' (strength), so 'strong spear'. The 'spear' element is a weapon of war rather than 'warrior' outright, but the martial sense is well established.
Ella is more popular than Gertrude today: about 5,831 US babies were given the name Ella in 2025, compared with 0 named Gertrude.
Ella means All; fairy maiden (Germanic origin), while Gertrude means Spear of strength (germanic origin).
In US records, Ella first appears in 1880 and Gertrude in 0, so Gertrude has the longer recorded history.