Girl · Greek, through Latin
Ellen
Say it: EL-un
Meaning
The English vernacular form of Helen, from Greek Helenē, of uncertain meaning.
Uncertainseveral explanations, none settled.
Used in England from the Middle Ages and very common in Victorian Britain and America.
Its wave through time
Fading since the 1880s
In the United States
- 274,729 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 1884, about 1 in 216 girls
- 333 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450
- The Renaissance1400 to 1600
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Elyn, Elin, Elene
| Latin | Elena |
|---|---|
| Welsh | Elen |
| Irish | Eibhlín |
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- English poll taxes and lay subsidy rolls (13th and 14th centuries)
- Parish baptism registers
- National census records of the 19th and 20th centuries
- 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.