Head to head · Girls' names
Alessandra vs Alma
#443 vs #449 in 2025
Alessandra is a whisker ahead (#443 vs #449 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Alessandra is stepping back from its peak, Alma is back after a long quiet spell. On momentum, Alma has the edge.
Each name in full: Alessandra · Alma
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, Alma leads 4 measures of 6; Alessandra leads 2.
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
Alessandra — stepping back from its peak. About 24,500 people named Alessandra are estimated to be alive in the US today.
Alma — back after a long quiet spell. About 56,000 people named Alma are estimated to be alive in the US today.
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Alessandra —, Alma #70 — Alma higher
- 1890s: Alessandra —, Alma #53 — Alma higher
- 1900s: Alessandra —, Alma #56 — Alma higher
- 1910s: Alessandra —, Alma #68 — Alma higher
- 1920s: Alessandra —, Alma #91 — Alma higher
- 1930s: Alessandra —, Alma #129 — Alma higher
- 1940s: Alessandra #4594, Alma #188 — Alma higher
- 1950s: Alessandra #4773, Alma #275 — Alma higher
- 1960s: Alessandra #3323, Alma #374 — Alma higher
- 1970s: Alessandra #2459, Alma #384 — Alma higher
- 1980s: Alessandra #1489, Alma #401 — Alma higher
- 1990s: Alessandra #816, Alma #428 — Alma higher
- 2000s: Alessandra #521, Alma #628 — Alessandra higher
- 2010s: Alessandra #327, Alma #727 — Alessandra higher
- 2020s: Alessandra #402, Alma #489 — Alessandra higher
Alma stood higher in 12 of 15 decades; Alessandra has held the lead since the 2000s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Alessandra | Alma |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #70 |
| 1890s | — | #53 |
| 1900s | — | #56 |
| 1910s | — | #68 |
| 1920s | — | #91 |
| 1930s | — | #129 |
| 1940s | #4594 | #188 |
| 1950s | #4773 | #275 |
| 1960s | #3323 | #374 |
| 1970s | #2459 | #384 |
| 1980s | #1489 | #401 |
| 1990s | #816 | #428 |
| 2000s | #521 | #628 |
| 2010s | #327 | #727 |
| 2020s | #402 | #489 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Alessandra
Not charting outside the US.
Alma
- France#4
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Alessandra
defender of man, defending warrior
From Greek alexein, 'to defend', and anēr/andrós, 'man'. Alessandra is the Italian feminine of the same compound that gives Alexander.
Alexandros → Alexandra → Alessandra
How it traveled
The root is Greek: Alexandros, a compound of 'defend' and 'man', already old by the time Alexander of Macedon carried it across Asia in the fourth century BC. The feminine Alexandra traveled with it, and as the name settled into the languages of Europe each one reshaped it — Latin kept the x, Italian turned it into the doubled s it favors, producing Alessandro and Alessandra.
Alma
"Nourishing, kind" in Latin; "soul" in Spanish and Portuguese
Alma is one spelling that several languages arrived at independently, which is why no single reading wins. Latin almus, feminine alma, means "nourishing" or "kind" and survives in alma mater, "nourishing mother." In Spanish, Portuguese and poetic Italian, alma is simply the word for soul. In Turkic languages, including Crimean Tatar, alma means apple — the same word behind Hungarian alma. Hebrew almah, "young woman," is a separate word that the name has been attached to in Jewish families. All of these are real; none cancels the others.
almus (Latin, "nourishing") → alma (Latin feminine; Spanish and Portuguese "soul") → Alma
How it traveled
The Latin adjective almus, "nourishing," was applied to goddesses and later to universities, giving the phrase alma mater. Quite separately, Spanish and Portuguese inherited alma as the plain word for soul, and Turkic languages carried an unrelated alma meaning apple — the source of the river Alma in Crimea.
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
Alessandra
al-uh-SAHN-druh
Stress on the third syllable. Italian speakers say ah-leh-SAHN-drah, with a clearer first vowel and a rolled r; both are heard in the US and neither needs correcting.
- Ale — The standard informal short form in Italian, said AH-leh; less transparent to English speakers, who may read it as 'ale'.
- Sandra — A long-established short form of Alessandra and Alexandra that became an independent given name in its own right, and is still well represented among older generations.
- Alessa — A tidier two-syllable clip used informally; also appears on its own as a given name.
- Alex — Informal, shared with dozens of other Alex- names and used by men and women alike.
- Also Sasha, Sandy.
Alma
AL-muh
Stress on the first syllable. Spanish and Portuguese speakers say AHL-mah, with a fuller first vowel; both are the same name, and neither needs correcting.
- Al — The main short form in English-speaking households; informal, and also a short form of several men's names.
- Allie — Informal; shared with Alice, Allison and Alexandra, and used as a standalone given name too.
- Almita — Spanish diminutive, used affectionately within families rather than as a public name.
- Ally — Spelling variant of Allie, informal, more common among younger speakers.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Alessandra if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsAlessandra is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itAlessandra runs 4 syllables, Alma 2
- plenty of nickname options6 recorded short forms — Ale, Sandra and Alessa
- a newer arrivalAlessandra entered the US charts in 1943
Choose Alma if you want…
- a name on the way upup 111 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesAlma is 2 syllables to Alessandra's 4
- a name that charts abroad tooAlma is on the national lists of France
- a long American recordAlma was already in use when US records began in 1880
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
Alessandra
Strengths
- Recognizable everywhere: the same name exists in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Greek, Russian and Polish, so it travels without being translated.
- A very long unbroken record — the Greek compound behind it has been in continuous use for well over two thousand years.
- Many established short forms already in circulation, from Ale and Alessa to Sandra and Alex, so a child has real choice.
To consider
- The spelling will need repeating. English speakers default to Alexandra, and the double s is easy to lose — expect a lifetime of 'with two s's, no x'.
- Four syllables is a lot of name for a form to hold or a stranger to say quickly, so in practice a short form usually does the daily work.
- Its American use is concentrated in recent decades, so it reads as a young name here — worth knowing if you were hoping for something that spans generations in the US.
Alma
Strengths
- Spelled the same way in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Hungarian and Bosnian — no adjusting for grandparents or passports.
- Two syllables and entirely phonetic; almost no one will need it spelled out twice.
- On record in the United States since the earliest years of national name statistics, and never fully out of use since.
To consider
- To Spanish and Portuguese speakers, Alma is not an opaque name but a familiar word — soul. Whether that lands as lovely or as a little literal depends entirely on the family.
- Most Almas in the United States today are well into later life, so some ears will place the name a couple of generations back before they place it as new again.
- It sits close to Alba, Elma and Ilma, and over the phone the first vowel occasionally gets misheard. A single repeat usually fixes it.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
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 Alessandra and Alma 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 Alessandra and Alma?
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.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap
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
- Four-syllable names that carry
- Names with only one spelling
- Italian names Americans adore
- Renaissance names from the Italian courts
- all guides
Where Alessandra and Alma each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Alessandra or Alma — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Alessandra or Alma?
- Alessandra, in 2025: Alessandra ranked #443 with 697 babies; Alma ranked #449 with 689 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Alessandra or Alma?
- Alma. Over the last five years Alessandra moved down 75 places; Alma moved up 111 places.
- Which is the older name, Alessandra or Alma?
- Alessandra entered the US charts in 1943; Alma was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Alma is the older name.
- How many people are named Alessandra and Alma?
- About 24,500 people named Alessandra are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 56,000 people named Alma are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Alessandras or Almas in the classroom?
- Alessandra will almost certainly be the only one in school. Alma 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
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Alessandra, Alma and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap