| Santiago | Alejandro | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Saint James | defender of the people |
| Origin | spanish | spanish |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | san-tee-AH-go | ah-leh-HAHN-dro |
| Syllables | 3 | 4 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1885 |
| Peak year | 2025 (7,554) | 2001 (4,557) |
| In 2025 | 7,554 | 1,842 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Santiago | Alejandro |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 37,145 | 11,274 |
| 2010s | 36,449 | 25,033 |
| 2000s | 14,613 | 43,118 |
| 1990s | 4,283 | 35,178 |
| 1980s | 2,627 | 15,316 |
| 1970s | 2,083 | 9,134 |
| 1960s | 1,464 | 3,099 |
| 1950s | 1,330 | 1,713 |
| 1940s | 1,111 | 938 |
| 1930s | 935 | 775 |
| 1920s | 1,050 | 732 |
| 1910s | 476 | 228 |
| 1900s | 123 | 66 |
| 1890s | 62 | 10 |
| 1880s | 77 | 10 |
A contraction of 'Sant Yago' — Saint James. Yago (also Iago) is the old Spanish form of Jacobo/James, from the Hebrew Ya'aqov (Jacob). The name honors Santiago the Apostle, patron saint of Spain, whose shrine is at Santiago de Compostela.
The Spanish form of Alexander, from the Greek Alexandros, combining alexein 'to defend, protect' and aner/andros 'man'. Carried through history by Alexander the Great and later by saints and kings.
Santiago is more popular than Alejandro today: about 7,554 US babies were given the name Santiago in 2025, compared with 1,842 named Alejandro.
Santiago means Saint James (spanish origin), while Alejandro means defender of the people (spanish origin).
In US records, Santiago first appears in 1880 and Alejandro in 1885, so Santiago has the longer recorded history.