Head to head · Girls' names
Alaia vs Anna
#117 vs #107 in 2025
Anna is a whisker ahead (#107 vs #117 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Anna is stepping back from its peak, Alaia is holding its place on the charts. On momentum, Alaia has the edge.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Anna leads 5 measures of 6; Alaia leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Alaia —, Anna #2 — Anna higher
- 1890s: Alaia —, Anna #2 — Anna higher
- 1900s: Alaia —, Anna #4 — Anna higher
- 1910s: Alaia —, Anna #7 — Anna higher
- 1920s: Alaia —, Anna #14 — Anna higher
- 1930s: Alaia —, Anna #32 — Anna higher
- 1940s: Alaia —, Anna #74 — Anna higher
- 1950s: Alaia —, Anna #101 — Anna higher
- 1960s: Alaia —, Anna #98 — Anna higher
- 1970s: Alaia —, Anna #82 — Anna higher
- 1980s: Alaia #9545, Anna #54 — Anna higher
- 1990s: Alaia #11130, Anna #39 — Anna higher
- 2000s: Alaia #6339, Anna #23 — Anna higher
- 2010s: Alaia #1863, Anna #43 — Anna higher
- 2020s: Alaia #123, Anna #86 — Anna higher
Anna stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Alaia | Anna |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #2 |
| 1890s | — | #2 |
| 1900s | — | #4 |
| 1910s | — | #7 |
| 1920s | — | #14 |
| 1930s | — | #32 |
| 1940s | — | #74 |
| 1950s | — | #101 |
| 1960s | — | #98 |
| 1970s | — | #82 |
| 1980s | #9545 | #54 |
| 1990s | #11130 | #39 |
| 2000s | #6339 | #23 |
| 2010s | #1863 | #43 |
| 2020s | #123 | #86 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Alaia
Not charting outside the US.
Anna
- France#15
- Canada#51
- Scotland#54
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Alaia
'joyful, cheerful' in Basque — though the American name has a second road behind it
The Basque reading is solid: alai means cheerful or merry, and Alaia is the standard feminine given-name form, one of many Basque names that came back into wide use in Spain in the late twentieth century. But many American Alaias were named within the Arabic-rooted Aaliyah / Alia group, where the sense is 'high, exalted'. Both are real; which one applies depends on the family. Separately, alaia is also the Hawaiian word for a traditional thin wooden surfboard — a true coincidence of sound rather than a source.
alai (Basque, 'cheerful') → Alaia
How it traveled
The clearest documented line runs through Basque, where alai means cheerful and Alaia serves as a woman's given name; such names spread widely across the Basque Country and the rest of Spain in the decades after Franco, when regional naming was freely used again. In the United States the name took a different route, entering alongside Aaliyah, Alaya, Aleah and their many spellings, so that Alaia landed on American birth records as much for its sound as for its Basque pedigree.
Anna
grace, favor
Anna is the Greek and Latin rendering of Hebrew Ḥannāh, from a root meaning grace or favor.
Ḥannāh → Hanna → Anna → Anne → Ann
How it traveled
The Hebrew name Ḥannāh belonged to the mother of the prophet Samuel; when Jewish scholars translated their scriptures into Greek, they wrote it Anna, and that form entered Latin and then all of Christian Europe. A prophetess named Anna appears in the Gospel of Luke, and Christian tradition gave the name to the mother of Mary, which sent it into the calendars of saints and from there into ordinary use in nearly every European language.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Alaia
uh-LAY-uh
uh-LAY-uh is the usual American reading. Spanish and Basque speakers say it closer to ah-LAH-ee-ah, and some English speakers reach for ah-LIE-uh on first sight. All three are in real use, so a family generally picks one and repeats it.
- Lala — Home-and-family short form, common with vowel-heavy names; rarely used on paper.
- Lai — Clipped informal form taken from the stressed middle of the name.
- Ali — Informal, and also a standalone given name in its own right for both sexes.
- Aya — Informal short form; independently a full given name in Japanese and Arabic naming.
- Also Allie.
Anna
AN-uh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Much of continental Europe says AH-nah, with a broader first vowel — both are the same name, and speakers switch between them without difficulty.
- Annie — The long-standing English short form, and a registered given name in its own right for well over a century.
- Anya — The Russian diminutive, used independently as a given name in English-speaking countries.
- Ania — Standard Polish diminutive, informal, used at home and among friends.
- Nan — An older English short form from the Ann/Anna family; now mostly heard among earlier generations.
- Also Annushka, Anni.
Who has carried each name
Alaia
No documented entry for Alaia yet.
Anna
Anna Kendrick (b. 1985) — Pitch Perfect star
Anna Wintour (b. 1949) — Vogue's legendary editor-in-chief
Anna Pavlova (b. 1882) — The ballerina so famous a dessert was named after her
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Alaia if you want…
- a name fewer children share#117 in 2025 — alaia will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name on the way upup 3 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itAlaia runs 3 syllables, Anna 2
- a newer arrivalAlaia entered the US charts in 1986
Choose Anna if you want…
- a name most people already know#107 in 2025, 2,521 babies that year
- a name past its most crowded yearsAnna is stepping back from its peak
- a name with fewer syllablesAnna is 2 syllables to Alaia's 3
- a name that charts abroad tooAnna is on the national lists of France, Canada and Scotland
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Alaia
Strengths
- Short, all-vowel structure with no silent letters or consonant clusters — most readers can attempt it aloud on sight, even if they choose the wrong stress.
- Works across languages: a real Basque given name, easy for Spanish speakers, and at home in the Arabic-rooted Aaliyah sound family.
- Has genuine short forms already in circulation — Lala, Lai, Ali, Aya — rather than needing one invented.
To consider
- The spelling competes with Alaya, Alayah, Alaia, Aliyah and Aaliyah, which sound similar or identical. Expect to spell it out often, and expect some paperwork to come back with a different version.
- Pronunciation is genuinely unsettled between uh-LAY-uh and ah-LIE-uh. Neither is wrong, which means correcting people is a lifelong small task rather than a one-time fix.
- The name's wave is very recent, so nearly everyone carrying it right now is a child. There is no adult generation of Alaias yet to make it feel ordinary on a résumé — that comes with time.
Anna
Strengths
- Spelled the same in English, German, Italian, Polish, Russian, Hungarian, Greek and the Nordic languages — no adaptation needed when it crosses a border.
- Everyone can spell it on the first try, and it fits any form field.
- Established short forms already exist: Annie, Anya, Ania, Nan — no need to invent one.
To consider
- Ana, Anne and Hannah are all in circulation and all sound close, so she may spend a lifetime confirming the spelling — usually with one short sentence rather than a struggle.
- In the United States it has a long history behind it, and a great many living Annas were named generations ago. That gives the name real depth; it also means she may meet more grown Annas than young ones.
- Four letters and two soft syllables can blur against a very short surname. Saying the full name aloud a few times settles the question quickly.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Alaia
40%chance Alaia feels dated by 2040
Alaia sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
Anna
12%chance Anna feels dated by 2040
Anna has held the top-100 across 14 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Alaia and Anna in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Alaia and Anna?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Alaia and Anna — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Alaia or Anna — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Alaia or Anna?
- Anna, in 2025: Anna ranked #107 with 2,521 babies; Alaia ranked #117 with 2,318 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Alaia or Anna?
- Alaia. Over the last five years Alaia moved up 3 places; Anna moved down 39 places.
- Which is the older name, Alaia or Anna?
- Alaia entered the US charts in 1986; Anna was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Anna is the older name.
- How many people are named Alaia and Anna?
- About 17,500 people named Alaia are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 445,000 people named Anna are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Alaias or Annas in the classroom?
- Alaia will almost certainly be the only one in school. Anna will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
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