Alison

Girl · Germanic, through Norman French

Alison

Say it: AL-ih-sun

Try it with your surname

Meaning

Medieval Norman and Scots diminutive of Alice, from Germanic Adalheidis ('noble kind').

Certainscholars agree on this meaning.

Common in medieval England and Scotland, revived in the 20th century.

Its wave through time

Most used in the 1970s

In the United States

114,124 babies given this name since 1905
At its height in 1979, about 1 in 547 girls
696 babies in 2020

Through the ages

Used by

English Scottish American French

The family of the name

Other spellings: Allison, Alyson, Alisoun

French	Alison

Famous bearers

Alison (Alisoun), the Wife of Bath in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales

Names worth a look

GenevieveGirlUncertain. Possibly from Germanic or Gaulish elements; proposals include 'kin' and 'woman', but none is settled.Early Medieval · peak 1915

JocelynGirlFrom the Norman name Joscelin, a diminutive of Gauzelin, from the Germanic tribal name of the Gauts (Goths);…Middle Ages · peak 2007

JoannaGirlFeminine of John, from Hebrew Yoḥanan 'YHWH is gracious'.Biblical · peak 1984

IsabelGirlA medieval Occitan and Spanish form of Elisabeth, from Hebrew Elisheva 'my God is an oath'.Middle Ages · peak 2003

CeciliaGirlLatin, feminine of the Roman family name Caecilius, traditionally derived from caecus 'blind'.Rome · peak 1904

AdaGirlUncertain. Usually taken as a short form of Germanic names in adal 'noble', but it has also been linked with Hebrew…Middle Ages · peak 1888

AliceGirlFrom Old French Aalis, a contraction of Germanic Adalheidis ('noble kind').Middle Ages · peak 1906

AlyssaGirlA modern form of Alicia or Alice, also associated with the flower alyssum (from Greek, 'against madness'); there is…Modern · peak 1999

Where this comes from

English poll taxes and lay subsidy rolls (13th and 14th centuries)
Well-known works of literature
United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Parish baptism registers
United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source

Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.

Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.