Head to head · Girls' names
Amalia vs Ivanna
#566 vs #566 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Amalia and Ivanna share the same spot on the 2025 charts (#566). 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, Amalia leads 3 measures of 6; Ivanna 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: Amalia #576, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1890s: Amalia #683, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1900s: Amalia #807, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1910s: Amalia #802, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1920s: Amalia #771, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1930s: Amalia #984, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1940s: Amalia #1144, Ivanna — — Amalia higher
- 1950s: Amalia #1236, Ivanna #5753 — Amalia higher
- 1960s: Amalia #1315, Ivanna #6348 — Amalia higher
- 1970s: Amalia #1295, Ivanna #8039 — Amalia higher
- 1980s: Amalia #1281, Ivanna #6386 — Amalia higher
- 1990s: Amalia #1271, Ivanna #1845 — Amalia higher
- 2000s: Amalia #1168, Ivanna #1407 — Amalia higher
- 2010s: Amalia #833, Ivanna #654 — Ivanna higher
- 2020s: Amalia #557, Ivanna #582 — Amalia higher
Amalia stood higher in 14 of 15 decades; Amalia took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Amalia | Ivanna |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #576 | — |
| 1890s | #683 | — |
| 1900s | #807 | — |
| 1910s | #802 | — |
| 1920s | #771 | — |
| 1930s | #984 | — |
| 1940s | #1144 | — |
| 1950s | #1236 | #5753 |
| 1960s | #1315 | #6348 |
| 1970s | #1295 | #8039 |
| 1980s | #1281 | #6386 |
| 1990s | #1271 | #1845 |
| 2000s | #1168 | #1407 |
| 2010s | #833 | #654 |
| 2020s | #557 | #582 |
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
Amalia
work, labor
The source is the Germanic element amal, 'work' or 'effort', which also gave the Amali the name of their ruling house among the Ostrogoths. Amelia grew from the same root; Emily and Emilia did not — they come from the Roman family name Aemilius, and the resemblance is coincidence.
amal (Old Germanic element, 'work') → Amalberga → Amalia → Amélie → Amelia
How it traveled
The building block is Old Germanic amal, 'work', which appears in a long line of early medieval names: Amalberga, Amalfrid, Amalasuntha. Latinized as Amalia, it became a favorite in German-speaking noble families and traveled with them by marriage — to the Netherlands in the seventeenth century, and to Greece in the nineteenth, when a Bavarian-born princess became the country's first queen.
Ivanna
God is gracious
The sense comes from the Hebrew name Yochanan, which lies behind John, Jane, Joan and every Ivan.
Yochanan → Ioannes → Ioann → Ivan → Ivanna
How it traveled
The root is Hebrew Yochanan, carried into Greek as Ioannes by the translators and writers of the early Christian era, and from there into Church Slavonic as Ioann. Slavic speech wore it down to Ivan, one of the most widely used men's names in Eastern Europe for centuries, and Ivanna is its feminine form — spelled with the double n in Ukrainian, with a single n as Ivana in Czech, Croatian, Serbian and Slovak.
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
Amalia
ah-MAH-lee-ah
That is the standard pronunciation in Spanish, Italian, German and Greek. English speakers who know Amelia first often reach for uh-MAYL-yuh instead, so expect to correct it now and then — both are heard in the US.
- Lia — The most portable short form, and a registered given name in its own right in Italy, Germany and the US.
- Mia — Taken from the middle of the name; also stands alone as a given name, which can make the full form invisible.
- Amy — An anglicizing short form, used mostly in English-speaking households rather than in Spanish- or Greek-speaking ones.
- Malia — Informal, drawn from the last three syllables; separately a Hawaiian given name with an unrelated history.
- Also Ama, Mali.
Ivanna
ee-VAH-nah
That is the Slavic and Spanish pronunciation and the usual one. Some English speakers reach for ih-VAN-uh instead, rhyming the middle with 'van'; both are heard in the US, so it is worth deciding early which one your family uses.
- Iva — The most common short form, and a standalone given name in South Slavic countries.
- Ivy — An English-language shortening that doubles as a well-established name of its own.
- Vanna — Informal, taken from the second half; also stands alone in Italian usage.
- Ana — Widely used in Spanish-speaking families, and a full given name in its own right.
- Also Ivi, Nana.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Amalia if you want…
- a name holding steadyAmalia is holding its place on the charts
- a long American recordAmalia was already in use when US records began in 1880
Choose Ivanna if you want…
- a name on the way upup 31 places on the charts in five years
- a newer arrivalIvanna entered the US charts in 1954
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
Amalia
Strengths
- Spelled identically in Spanish, Italian, German, Polish, Dutch and Romanian, so it crosses borders and family languages without adjustment.
- Several short forms already in real use — Lia, Mia, Amy — none of them invented on the spot.
- Documented in Germanic Europe for well over a thousand years, and in continuous rather than fashionable use in the US.
To consider
- Amelia is far better known in English, and Amalia will be heard and written as Amelia often enough that spelling it out becomes routine. It is a small tax, paid frequently.
- Two pronunciations circulate in the US — ah-MAH-lee-ah and uh-MAYL-yuh. Deciding early which one your family uses saves the child from arbitrating it at every new school.
- Four syllables is a lot of name for a short surname or a hurried roll call, and the nicknames will do real work. That is worth liking the sound of Lia or Mia in advance.
Ivanna
Strengths
- Shares a root with John, Jane, Joan and Juana, so the name has a long, unbroken documented line behind it.
- Reads correctly in both Spanish and Slavic languages without respelling — useful in a bilingual family.
- Several ready-made short forms, including Iva, Ivy and Ana, each of which also works as a name on its own.
To consider
- The single-n Ivana is the more familiar spelling to many Americans, so expect a lifetime of gentle corrections — and of forms coming back with one n.
- Pronunciation splits between ee-VAH-nah and ih-VAN-uh depending on who is reading it aloud. Neither is wrong, but she will be introducing herself often.
- Said quickly in English, the first two syllables can land close to 'I wanna'. Most people never notice; a few schoolyards will.
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 Amalia and Ivanna 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 Amalia and Ivanna?
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
Where Amalia and Ivanna each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Amalia or Ivanna — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Amalia or Ivanna?
- They tie in 2025: Amalia ranked #566 with 530 babies; Ivanna ranked #566 with 530 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Amalia or Ivanna?
- Ivanna. Over the last five years Amalia moved up 4 places; Ivanna moved up 31 places.
- Which is the older name, Amalia or Ivanna?
- Amalia was already in use when US records began in 1880; Ivanna entered the US charts in 1954. On the American record, Amalia is the older name.
- How many people are named Amalia and Ivanna?
- About 13,500 people named Amalia are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 10,000 people named Ivanna are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Amalias or Ivannas in the classroom?
- Amalia will almost certainly be the only one in school. Ivanna 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 Amalia, Ivanna 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