girls' name ★ peaked 1947

Elaine

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #305 Trend ↑ Rising 72%

From Old French Elaine, a variant of Elene, cognate to Helen, ultimately from Ancient Greek Ἑλένη (Helénē).

Rank 2025
#305
among girls · ↑63 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,007
named Elaine · +19% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,596
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1947
7,072 babies
All-time total
263,543
#154 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Elaine popularity over time

263,543 babies have been named Elaine since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
1.252.53.75518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s 41 – 41 4 – #857
1890s 239 – 239 24 +483% #469
1900s 783 – 783 78 +228% #309
1910s 8,576 6 8,582 858 +996% #136
1920s 34,907 111 35,018 3,502 +308% #67
1930s 41,108 146 41,254 4,125 +18% #42
1940s 60,105 155 60,260 6,026 +46% #44
1950s 54,232 88 54,320 5,432 -10% #60
1960s 27,466 79 27,545 2,755 -49% #112
1970s 9,779 30 9,809 981 -64% #217
1980s 7,112 38 7,150 715 -27% #293
1990s 5,441 – 5,441 544 -24% #409
2000s 4,138 – 4,138 414 -24% #576
2010s 4,384 – 4,384 438 +6% #563
2020s (to 2025) 4,579 – 4,579 763 +74% #305

Where Elaine is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 1,105 0.69 #280
2027 1,196 0.74 #259
2028 1,279 0.80 #244
2029 1,354 0.84 #226
2030 1,421 0.88 #214

Where Elaine is most popular

Girls named Elaine per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.493 per 1,000. Strongest in Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Elaine born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Nebraska 40 1.11 +126%
Iowa 63 1.08 +119%
Kansas 61 1.06 +115%
Idaho 35 1.05 +112%
Wisconsin 104 1.01 +105%
Missouri 121 1.00 +104%
Indiana 140 0.997 +102%
Oklahoma 71 0.965 +96%
Colorado 88 0.788 +60%
Kentucky 66 0.772 +57%
Ohio 180 0.759 +54%
Utah 62 0.745 +51%
South Carolina 65 0.723 +47%
Minnesota 78 0.723 +47%
Arkansas 38 0.719 +46%
Washington 102 0.706 +43%
Michigan 124 0.681 +38%
Texas 506 0.629 +28%
Nevada 29 0.624 +27%
Louisiana 54 0.617 +25%
Maryland 65 0.613 +25%
Oregon 39 0.599 +22%
Virginia 101 0.593 +20%
Alabama 55 0.586 +19%
Illinois 133 0.581 +18%
Tennessee 91 0.574 +17%
North Carolina 126 0.553 +12%
Arizona 73 0.520 +6%
Pennsylvania 118 0.499 ≈ national
West Virginia 13 0.496 ≈ national
California 403 0.479 ≈ national
New Jersey 85 0.471 ≈ national
Georgia 104 0.458 -7%
Delaware 5 0.441 -11%
Massachusetts 52 0.430 -13%
South Dakota 6 0.420 -15%
New York 165 0.417 -15%
Florida 138 0.323 -35%
New Mexico 6 0.247 -50%
Mississippi 11 0.235 -52%
Connecticut 11 0.189 -62%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Elaine

Elaine is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #305 in 2025 with 1,007 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 263,543 American babies have been named Elaine. Its peak came in 1947, when 7,072 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1940s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Elaine stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Elaine?

The median living Elaine is about 70 years old; half are between 58 and 78. An estimated 156 thousand people named Elaine are alive in the United States today.

median 70 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Elaine year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 1,007 #305 – –
2024 849 #368 – –
2023 808 #381 – –
2022 685 #464 – –
2021 647 #486 – –
2020 583 #519 – –
2019 545 #563 – –
2018 470 #636 – –
2017 507 #591 – –
2016 498 #604 – –
2015 423 #675 – –
2014 439 #650 – –
2013 360 #753 – –
2012 400 #703 – –
2011 399 #699 – –
2010 343 #797 – –
2009 371 #766 – –
2008 399 #743 – –
2007 406 #720 – –
2006 393 #718 – –
2005 469 #606 – –
2004 413 #662 – –
2003 427 #629 – –
2002 399 #638 – –
2001 408 #615 – –
2000 453 #576 – –
1995 541 #467 – –
1990 632 #409 – –
1985 655 #360 5 #6,848
1980 771 #313 6 #5,734
1975 860 #282 6 #4,993
1970 1,437 #217 9 #3,356
1965 2,498 #149 12 #2,397
1960 4,315 #112 9 #2,931
1955 5,635 #77 6 #3,616
1950 6,037 #60 9 #2,632
1945 5,887 #44 9 #2,445
1940 4,782 #50 15 #1,828
1935 4,080 #51 19 #1,606
1930 3,954 #69 7 #3,380
1925 3,776 #73 13 #2,340
1920 2,433 #107 7 #3,589
1915 1,212 #155 – –
1910 195 #279 – –
1905 79 #380 – –
1900 50 #479 – –
1895 21 #691 – –
1890 12 #800 – –
1885 – – – –
1880 5 #857 – –

Famous people named Elaine

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Elaine Hendrix Elaine Hendrix American actress (born 1970) Contemporary
  2. 2 Elaine Chao Elaine Chao American businesswoman and government official (born 1953) Contemporary
  3. 3 Elaine Paige Elaine Paige English singer and actress (born 1948) Contemporary
  4. 4 Elaine May Elaine May American actress and comedian (born 1932) Contemporary
  5. 5 Elaine Stritch Elaine Stritch American actress (1925–2014) Contemporary
  6. 6 Elaine Cassidy Elaine Cassidy Irish actress (born 1979) Contemporary
  7. 7 Elaine Pagels Elaine Pagels American religious historian (born 1943) Contemporary
  8. 8 Elaine Showalter Elaine Showalter American literary critic, feminist and writer b. 1941 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Elaine Stewart Topics referred to by the same term 1930–2011 · Contemporary
  10. 10 Elaine Thompson Elaine Thompson Jamaican sprinter (born 1992) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Elaine, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Elaine?

The median living Elaine is about 70 years old. Half of all living Elaines are between 58 and 78 years old.

How many people named Elaine are alive today?

An estimated 156 thousand people named Elaine are alive in the United States, based on 263,543 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Elaine mean?

From Old French Elaine, a variant of Elene, cognate to Helen, ultimately from Ancient Greek Ἑλένη (Helénē).

How popular is the name Elaine in 2025?

Elaine ranked #305 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,007 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Elaine?

263,543 babies have been named Elaine in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Elaine most popular?

Elaine peaked in 1947, when 7,072 newborns received the name.

Is Elaine a boy or girl name?

Elaine is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Elaine rising or falling?

Elaine is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Elaine become more popular?

Elaine is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,421 girls named Elaine in 2030, which would rank around #214. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Elaine?

Well-known people named Elaine include Elaine Hendrix (actor), Elaine Chao (economist), Elaine Paige (singer).

Names like Elaine

Names that sound and feel close to Elaine: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Elaine with similar names → More names starting with E →