Head to head · Girls' names
Alena vs Angelica
#707 vs #707 in 2025
Alena and Angelica share the same spot on the 2025 charts (#707). The records cannot split them; sound and story will.
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, Angelica leads 2 measures of 6; Alena 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
- 1890s: Alena #1296, Angelica #1432 — Alena higher
- 1900s: Alena #1702, Angelica #1902 — Alena higher
- 1910s: Alena #2016, Angelica #1617 — Angelica higher
- 1920s: Alena #2185, Angelica #1509 — Angelica higher
- 1930s: Alena #2536, Angelica #1286 — Angelica higher
- 1940s: Alena #2942, Angelica #1353 — Angelica higher
- 1950s: Alena #2648, Angelica #1111 — Angelica higher
- 1960s: Alena #1798, Angelica #688 — Angelica higher
- 1970s: Alena #1307, Angelica #270 — Angelica higher
- 1980s: Alena #1122, Angelica #156 — Angelica higher
- 1990s: Alena #924, Angelica #107 — Angelica higher
- 2000s: Alena #694, Angelica #193 — Angelica higher
- 2010s: Alena #689, Angelica #453 — Angelica higher
- 2020s: Alena #745, Angelica #632 — Angelica higher
Angelica stood higher in 12 of 14 decades; Angelica has held the lead since the 1910s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Alena | Angelica |
|---|---|---|
| 1890s | #1296 | #1432 |
| 1900s | #1702 | #1902 |
| 1910s | #2016 | #1617 |
| 1920s | #2185 | #1509 |
| 1930s | #2536 | #1286 |
| 1940s | #2942 | #1353 |
| 1950s | #2648 | #1111 |
| 1960s | #1798 | #688 |
| 1970s | #1307 | #270 |
| 1980s | #1122 | #156 |
| 1990s | #924 | #107 |
| 2000s | #694 | #193 |
| 2010s | #689 | #453 |
| 2020s | #745 | #632 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Alena
from Helen — a Greek name whose sense was never settled
Alena descends from Helena (and in some families from Magdalena, 'of Magdala', a village on the Sea of Galilee). The Helena line is clear; what Helenē itself meant in early Greek is not. The oldest serious readings link it to helenē, a word for a torch or basket, and to a root for shining or sunlight; neither has won. Greek naming of that era rarely left an explanation behind.
Helenē → Helena → Elena → Alena
How it traveled
Helenē belonged to Greek myth long before it belonged to churches, and Latin turned it into Helena, which the Roman world carried north and east. In the Slavic languages the initial H fell away and the vowels opened: Elena in the south, Alena in Czech and Slovak lands, Alyona in Russian and Belarusian speech, where it began as a familiar form of Yelena and then stood up on its own.
Angelica
angelic, of the angels
From Latin angelicus, itself from Greek angelikos and angelos, "messenger" — the word that became "angel."
angelos (Greek) → angelicus (Latin) → Angelica (Italian) → Angelica
How it traveled
The root is Greek angelos, "messenger," which the Greek translators of the Hebrew Bible used for the messengers of God and which passed into Latin as angelus. From it came the adjective angelicus, "angelic," and its feminine form angelica, which medieval Europe used both as a woman's name and as the name of a tall umbelliferous plant, Angelica archangelica, grown for medicine and later candied for cakes.
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
Alena
uh-LAY-nuh
Two pronunciations circulate in the US and both are correct: uh-LAY-nuh follows English habits, while ah-LEH-nuh is the Czech, Slovak and Russian version, with the stress on a short middle vowel. Families usually pick one and hold to it.
- Lena — The most common short form across languages, and a fully established given name in its own right.
- Allie / Ally — The usual English-language clip, informal, shared with Allison and Alexandra.
- Alenka — The standard affectionate diminutive in Czech, Slovak and Slovene; used at home rather than on documents.
- Lenka — Czech and Slovak diminutive that also stands alone as an official given name there.
- Also Ali, Nena.
Angelica
an-JEL-ih-kuh
Spanish and Portuguese speakers say an-HEH-lee-kah, with the j-sound replaced by a breathy h and the stress moved to the second syllable. Both are correct for their language; a family that uses both will want to decide early which one strangers get.
- Angie — The most widespread short form in English, shared with Angela and Angelina; also given on its own as a full name.
- Angel — Informal, and used for boys and girls alike as an independent given name in English and Spanish-speaking families.
- Ange — Informal, mostly within families and among close friends; pronounced to rhyme with "strange."
- Lica — Informal, chiefly in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking households, clipped from the end rather than the front.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Alena if you want…
- a name with fewer syllablesAlena is 3 syllables to Angelica's 4
- plenty of nickname options6 recorded short forms — Lena, Allie / Ally and Alenka
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 40% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 66% for Angelica
Choose Angelica if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsAngelica is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itAngelica runs 4 syllables, Alena 3
- a name that feels very nowAngelica is stepping back from its peak
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
Alena
Strengths
- Spelled phonetically for English readers — six letters, no silent parts, and most people write it correctly on the second try.
- Carries ready-made short forms in real use, from Lena to Allie, so the child has choices without inventing any.
- Recognized across Czech, Slovak, Russian, Belarusian and German-speaking regions, and close enough to Elena and Helena to be understood almost anywhere.
To consider
- The pronunciation genuinely splits — uh-LAY-nuh and ah-LEH-nuh both belong to the name. Expect a lifetime of gentle correcting, or a decision to answer to either.
- It sits in a crowded neighborhood of near-twins: Alaina, Aleena, Alina, Elena, Elaina. Spoken aloud over the phone, it will often need to be spelled out.
- Because Lena and Allie are shared with several other names, the short form on its own will not always point back to Alena.
Angelica
Strengths
- Reads and works in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and German with only an accent mark changing — useful in a bilingual family.
- The meaning is not in dispute: Latin angelicus, "angelic." No competing theories to explain.
- Established short forms already exist, Angie above all, so the child inherits options rather than inventing them.
To consider
- The English and Spanish pronunciations differ sharply — an-JEL-ih-kuh against an-HEH-lee-kah — and Angelica will be asked to choose, or to correct people, fairly often.
- It sits close to Angela, Angelina and Angelique, and gets confused with all three. The spelling Anjelica also exists, so expect to spell it out.
- For people who watched cartoons in the 1990s, the name still calls up Angelica Pickles from Rugrats. That association fades with each cohort, but it is real for adults now in their thirties.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Alena
40%chance Alena feels dated by 2040
Alena 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.
Angelica
66%chance Angelica feels dated by 2040
Angelica is coming down from a big peak (#97 in 1996). This is the stretch of the cycle where a name starts to sound like the decade it ruled.
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 Alena and Angelica 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 Alena and Angelica?
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 these names appear on
- Angel and heaven names
- Broadway names from the stage door
- Founding-era American names
- First Lady names through the centuries
- all guides
Where Alena and Angelica each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Alena or Angelica — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Alena or Angelica?
- They tie in 2025: Alena ranked #707 with 398 babies; Angelica ranked #707 with 398 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Alena or Angelica?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Alena moved down 28 places; Angelica moved down 135 places.
- Which is the older name, Alena or Angelica?
- Alena entered the US charts in 1891; Angelica entered the US charts in 1892. On the American record, Alena is the older name.
- How many people are named Alena and Angelica?
- About 15,000 people named Alena are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 90,500 people named Angelica are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Alenas or Angelicas in the classroom?
- Alena will almost certainly be the only one in school. Angelica will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Alena, Angelica and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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