Baby Names US
girls' name ★ peaked 1979

Elissa

Meaning Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἔλῐσσᾰ (Élĭssă) Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,848 Trend ↓ Falling 27%

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἔλῐσσᾰ (Élĭssă); probably from Phoenician 𐤀𐤋𐤀𐤎𐤕 (ʾlʾst /⁠Elishat⁠/), 𐤀𐤋𐤀𐤎 (ʾlʾs /⁠Elisha⁠/).This etymology is incomplete.

Rank 2025
#1,848
among girls · ↓318 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
108
named Elissa · -23% vs 2024
How common
1 in 14,882
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1979
408 babies
All-time total
18,033
#1,139 all-time among girls
First recorded
1914
in Social Security records

Elissa popularity over time

18,033 babies have been named Elissa since 1914, 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
0.080.150.230.318801900192019401960198020002020Peak 1979Girls

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 Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – –
1890s – – – –
1900s – – – –
1910s 46 5 – #2,284
1920s 37 4 -20% #2,968
1930s 378 38 +922% #886
1940s 676 68 +79% #792
1950s 1,283 128 +90% #680
1960s 1,352 135 +5% #757
1970s 2,465 247 +82% #496
1980s 3,277 328 +33% #529
1990s 2,865 287 -13% #706
2000s 2,653 265 -7% #784
2010s 2,115 212 -20% #888
2020s (to 2025) 886 148 -30% #1,345

Where Elissa 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 102 0.06 outside top 500
2027 97 0.06 outside top 500
2028 94 0.06 outside top 500
2029 90 0.06 outside top 500
2030 88 0.05 outside top 500

Where Elissa is most popular

Girls named Elissa per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.089 per 1,000. Strongest in Texas, California, and Arizona.

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 Elissa 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
Texas 158 0.196 +121%
California 154 0.183 +106%
Arizona 23 0.164 +84%
Florida 51 0.119 +34%
Washington 15 0.104 +17%
Georgia 19 0.084 -6%
Virginia 12 0.070 -21%
North Carolina 13 0.057 -36%
New York 22 0.056 -38%
Wisconsin 5 0.049 -45%
New Jersey 6 0.033 -63%
Illinois 6 0.026 -71%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Pennsylvania – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
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 Elissa

Elissa is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #1,848 in 2025 with 108 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1914, 18,033 American babies have been named Elissa. Its peak came in 1979, when 408 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1970s.

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 Elissa stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Elissa?

The median living Elissa is about 35 years old; half are between 21 and 49. An estimated 17 thousand people named Elissa are alive in the United States today.

median 35 020406080100

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

Elissa year by year

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

Year Girls Girls rank
2025 108 #1,848
2024 140 #1,530
2023 150 #1,465
2022 160 #1,416
2021 164 #1,348
2020 164 #1,345
2019 213 #1,137
2018 183 #1,264
2017 166 #1,388
2016 166 #1,404
2015 169 #1,394
2014 242 #1,065
2013 235 #1,057
2012 298 #888
2011 224 #1,098
2010 219 #1,122
2009 206 #1,211
2008 247 #1,059
2007 224 #1,145
2006 248 #1,033
2005 274 #910
2004 279 #881
2003 284 #852
2002 299 #788
2001 302 #784
2000 290 #792
1995 290 #714
1990 279 #744
1985 302 #622
1980 357 #529
1975 216 #695
1970 258 #637
1965 103 #1,026
1960 105 #1,048
1955 144 #805
1950 86 #982
1945 55 #1,051
1940 35 #1,247
1935 61 #886
1930 7 #3,768
1925 – –
1920 11 #2,968
1915 7 #3,536
1910 – –
1905 – –
1900 – –
1895 – –
1890 – –
1885 – –
1880 – –

Famous people named Elissa

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

  1. 1 Elissa Elissa Lebanese singer (born 1971) b. 1972 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Elissa?

The median living Elissa is about 35 years old. Half of all living Elissas are between 21 and 49 years old.

How many people named Elissa are alive today?

An estimated 17 thousand people named Elissa are alive in the United States, based on 18,033 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Elissa mean?

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἔλῐσσᾰ (Élĭssă); probably from Phoenician 𐤀𐤋𐤀𐤎𐤕 (ʾlʾst /⁠Elishat⁠/), 𐤀𐤋𐤀𐤎 (ʾlʾs /⁠Elisha⁠/).This etymology is incomplete.

How popular is the name Elissa in 2025?

Elissa ranked #1,848 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 108 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Elissa?

18,033 babies have been named Elissa in the United States since 1914, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Elissa most popular?

Elissa peaked in 1979, when 408 newborns received the name.

Is Elissa a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Elissa rising or falling?

Elissa is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Elissa become more popular?

Elissa is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 88 girls named Elissa in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Elissa?

Well-known people named Elissa include Elissa (singer).

Names like Elissa

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

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