Head to head · Girls' names
Ana vs Miriam
#245 vs #246 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Ana is a whisker ahead (#245 vs #246 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name 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, Ana leads 4 measures of 6; Miriam 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: Ana #756, Miriam #292 — Miriam higher
- 1890s: Ana #971, Miriam #234 — Miriam higher
- 1900s: Ana #996, Miriam #192 — Miriam higher
- 1910s: Ana #1052, Miriam #150 — Miriam higher
- 1920s: Ana #874, Miriam #155 — Miriam higher
- 1930s: Ana #794, Miriam #210 — Miriam higher
- 1940s: Ana #704, Miriam #265 — Miriam higher
- 1950s: Ana #459, Miriam #272 — Miriam higher
- 1960s: Ana #331, Miriam #325 — Miriam higher
- 1970s: Ana #234, Miriam #350 — Ana higher
- 1980s: Ana #180, Miriam #313 — Ana higher
- 1990s: Ana #137, Miriam #284 — Ana higher
- 2000s: Ana #147, Miriam #286 — Ana higher
- 2010s: Ana #219, Miriam #298 — Ana higher
- 2020s: Ana #226, Miriam #255 — Ana higher
Miriam stood higher in 9 of 15 decades; Ana has held the lead since the 1970s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Ana | Miriam |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #756 | #292 |
| 1890s | #971 | #234 |
| 1900s | #996 | #192 |
| 1910s | #1052 | #150 |
| 1920s | #874 | #155 |
| 1930s | #794 | #210 |
| 1940s | #704 | #265 |
| 1950s | #459 | #272 |
| 1960s | #331 | #325 |
| 1970s | #234 | #350 |
| 1980s | #180 | #313 |
| 1990s | #137 | #284 |
| 2000s | #147 | #286 |
| 2010s | #219 | #298 |
| 2020s | #226 | #255 |
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
Ana
Grace
From Hebrew Hannah, 'grace, favor', through Greek and Latin Anna.
Hannah → Anna → Ana
How it traveled
Ana de Mendoza, Princess of Eboli, lost an eye as a girl and wore a patch; she became one of the most powerful figures at the court of Philip II of Spain until, in 1579, he had her arrested over a political intrigue, and she spent the rest of her life confined in her palace at Pastrana. In Angola, Nzinga of Ndongo and Matamba negotiated with the Portuguese, was baptized as Ana de Sousa, and then fought them for decades to keep her kingdoms free.
Miriam
Contested — readings include "bitter", "rebellion", and "beloved"
Hebrew scholars have long linked Miryam to mar, "bitter", or marah, "to rebel". A competing line, taken seriously by Egyptologists, connects it to Egyptian mry, "beloved", which fits a name borne by an Israelite woman born in Egypt. A further reading takes it as "wished-for child". No one reading has won.
Miryam (Hebrew) → Mariam (Greek) → Maria (Latin) → Mary (English) → Miriam (English)
How it traveled
Miriam begins as Hebrew Miryam, the prophetess of Exodus and Numbers. When Jewish scholars in Alexandria translated the Hebrew Bible into Greek in the last centuries BC, Miryam became Mariam, and from there Latin took Maria — which is how the same name reached English twice, once as Mary and much later, straight from the Hebrew, as Miriam.
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
Ana
AH-nuh
Two syllables with the stress on the first; some English speakers say AN-uh.
- Anita — The Spanish pet form.
- Annie — The English pet form.
Miriam
MEER-ee-am
Most Americans say MEER-ee-am; MIRR-ee-am, with the vowel of "mirror", is also standard and widely heard. In Hebrew it is closer to meer-YAHM, with the stress at the end.
- Mimi — Informal and long established; also used on its own and as a grandmother name in some families.
- Miri — Common in Israel and in Hebrew-speaking families; used both at home and as a stand-alone name.
- Mim — Clipped, informal, mostly family and school use.
- Mira — Everyday short form that also exists independently as a given name in several languages.
- Also Mitzi.
Who has carried each name
Ana
Ana de Armas (b. 1988) — Knives Out and Blonde star
Ana Ivanovic (b. 1987) — French Open champion
Miriam
Miriam Makeba (b. 1932) — "Mama Africa" — Grammy-winning singer and activist
Miriam Margolyes (b. 1941) — Harry Potter's Professor Sprout
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 Ana if you want…
- a name holding steadyAna is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesAna is 2 syllables to Miriam's 3
Choose Miriam if you want…
- a name on the way upup 22 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itMiriam runs 3 syllables, Ana 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Mimi, Miri and Mim
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
Ana
Strengths
- Short, simple and used across many languages.
- A settled, lovely meaning.
- A long American history.
To consider
- People will write Anna.
- The pronunciation varies between AH-nuh and AN-uh.
- It is common enough that an Ana may share her name at school.
Miriam
Strengths
- A spelling almost everyone can read on sight, because it sits so close to Mary and Maria.
- Unbroken presence in American records from the very start of them — familiar in every generation without being crowded.
- Travels intact: Maryam in Arabic, Mirjam in German, Myriam in French, Miryam in Hebrew all point back to the same woman.
To consider
- The "bitter" reading is the one most often quoted in name books. It is only one of several serious readings, but it is the one relatives are likely to bring up.
- Two standard pronunciations, MEER- and MIRR-, means the occasional correction. Neither is wrong, so it is worth deciding which one your family uses.
- Myriam, Mirriam and Mariam are all real names, so expect a spelling check now and then on forms and rosters.
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 Ana and Miriam 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 Ana and Miriam?
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 Ana and Miriam — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Ana or Miriam — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Ana or Miriam?
- Ana, in 2025: Ana ranked #245 with 1,276 babies; Miriam ranked #246 with 1,262 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Ana or Miriam?
- Miriam. Over the last five years Ana moved down 1 place; Miriam moved up 22 places.
- Which is the older name, Ana or Miriam?
- The US record cannot say: both were already in use when it began in 1880.
- How many people are named Ana and Miriam?
- About 106,000 people named Ana are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 75,000 people named Miriam are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Anas or Miriams in the classroom?
- Ana will almost certainly be the only one in school. Miriam 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
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