Head to head · Girls' names
Anastasia vs Valeria
#163 vs #162 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Valeria is a whisker ahead (#162 vs #163 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, Valeria leads 4 measures of 6; Anastasia 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: Anastasia #522, Valeria #688 — Anastasia higher
- 1890s: Anastasia #524, Valeria #613 — Anastasia higher
- 1900s: Anastasia #598, Valeria #587 — Valeria higher
- 1910s: Anastasia #586, Valeria #457 — Valeria higher
- 1920s: Anastasia #733, Valeria #509 — Valeria higher
- 1930s: Anastasia #1060, Valeria #615 — Valeria higher
- 1940s: Anastasia #1366, Valeria #799 — Valeria higher
- 1950s: Anastasia #1435, Valeria #675 — Valeria higher
- 1960s: Anastasia #855, Valeria #703 — Valeria higher
- 1970s: Anastasia #658, Valeria #984 — Anastasia higher
- 1980s: Anastasia #494, Valeria #946 — Anastasia higher
- 1990s: Anastasia #331, Valeria #386 — Anastasia higher
- 2000s: Anastasia #302, Valeria #145 — Valeria higher
- 2010s: Anastasia #243, Valeria #148 — Valeria higher
- 2020s: Anastasia #166, Valeria #155 — Valeria higher
Valeria stood higher in 10 of 15 decades; Valeria has held the lead since the 2000s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Anastasia | Valeria |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #522 | #688 |
| 1890s | #524 | #613 |
| 1900s | #598 | #587 |
| 1910s | #586 | #457 |
| 1920s | #733 | #509 |
| 1930s | #1060 | #615 |
| 1940s | #1366 | #799 |
| 1950s | #1435 | #675 |
| 1960s | #855 | #703 |
| 1970s | #658 | #984 |
| 1980s | #494 | #946 |
| 1990s | #331 | #386 |
| 2000s | #302 | #145 |
| 2010s | #243 | #148 |
| 2020s | #166 | #155 |
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
Anastasia
Resurrection; she who will rise again
From Greek anastasis, 'resurrection, a rising up' — the feminine counterpart of the man's name Anastasios.
anastasis (Greek: resurrection) → Anastasios → Anastasia → Anastasiya → Stacy
How it traveled
The name is Greek and Christian from the start: anastasis was the word for the Resurrection, and Anastasia was given to daughters as a piece of that vocabulary. It spread with the Eastern church into the Slavic world, where it became one of the great staples of Russian and Ukrainian naming, and westward into Latin Christendom, where it survived in calendars and saints' days.
Valeria
from Latin valere, 'to be strong, to be well'
The same Latin verb sits behind English words like valid and value.
Valerius → Valeria → Valérie → Valerie
How it traveled
Valeria began as a Roman family name — the feminine of Valerius, borne by the gens Valeria, among the oldest patrician houses of the Republic. Because Roman women were named for their father's clan, Valeria was a real, common name in the streets of Rome long before it was a fashionable one anywhere else.
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
Anastasia
an-uh-STAY-zhuh
That is the usual American pronunciation. Greek, Russian and much of Europe say an-ah-stah-SEE-ah, stressing the second-to-last syllable, and plenty of families in the US use that version too.
- Ana — The most portable short form in English and Spanish alike; also stands alone as a given name.
- Stacy — A historic English clipping of Anastasia that became an independent name; strongly represented among older generations.
- Nastya — The standard everyday short form in Russian and Ukrainian, informal and used among family and friends.
- Stasia — Used in Polish and Slavic families, and by English speakers who prefer the tail of the name to the head.
- Also Tasia, Asya.
Valeria
vuh-LAIR-ee-uh
That is the usual American reading. Spanish and Italian speakers say vah-LEH-ree-ah, with a clean short e and four distinct syllables; both are correct for the same spelling, and many families use whichever fits the room.
- Val — The standard English short form; also serves Valerie and Valentina, so it is shared territory.
- Vale — Common in Spanish-speaking families, said VAH-leh; used informally within the family rather than at school.
- Lera — The usual Russian short form of Valeriya; used among Russian speakers and stands alone in conversation.
- Valia — An affectionate form heard in Spanish and Italian households.
- Also Vali.
Who has carried each name
Anastasia
Anastasia Nikolaevna, Grand Duchess of Russia (b. 1901) — The tsar's daughter whose rumored survival inspired decades of legend and films
Valeria
No documented entry for Valeria yet.
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 Anastasia if you want…
- a long American recordAnastasia was already in use when US records began in 1880
Choose Valeria if you want…
- a newer arrivalValeria entered the US charts in 1881
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
Anastasia
Strengths
- A settled, documented meaning in Greek — resurrection — with no competing readings.
- Recognized across Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Italian and Spanish, with spellings close enough that it travels intact.
- Several long-established short forms, from Ana to Stacy to Nastya, so the child has real choices rather than invented ones.
To consider
- Two pronunciations coexist: an-uh-STAY-zhuh and an-ah-stah-SEE-ah. Both are correct, but she will be asked which one she uses, probably for life.
- Five syllables and nine letters. Forms, teachers and coffee cups will shorten it whether or not the family does.
- The name is closely tied to the Romanov story and the films it produced, and more recently to the heroine of the Fifty Shades novels. Neither association is overwhelming, but both are out there.
Valeria
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds in English, Spanish and Italian alike, with no silent letters and no competing variants to correct.
- Works unchanged in several major languages, so it travels without translation across a bilingual family.
- A documented record stretching from Republican Rome to this year's classrooms, without a gap needing revival.
To consider
- Valeria and Valerie are constantly mistaken for each other, especially over the phone. Expect to spell out the ending, and expect the occasional Valerie in her mail.
- The two pronunciations — vuh-LAIR-ee-uh and vah-LEH-ree-ah — can both attach to one child, at school and at home. Most families find this untroublesome, but it is worth deciding which one you will introduce her by.
- Four syllables is a lot next to a long surname, and Val is the only really short option in English.
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 Anastasia and Valeria 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 Anastasia and Valeria?
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 that carry both names
Every list here names both Anastasia and Valeria — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Anastasia or Valeria — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Anastasia or Valeria?
- Valeria, in 2025: Valeria ranked #162 with 1,835 babies; Anastasia ranked #163 with 1,832 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Anastasia or Valeria?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Anastasia moved down 5 places; Valeria moved down 12 places.
- Which is the older name, Anastasia or Valeria?
- Anastasia was already in use when US records began in 1880; Valeria entered the US charts in 1881. On the American record, Anastasia is the older name.
- How many people are named Anastasia and Valeria?
- About 53,000 people named Anastasia are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 73,500 people named Valeria are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Anastasias or Valerias in the classroom?
- Anastasia will almost certainly be the only one in school. Valeria 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 Anastasia, Valeria 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