Head to head · Girls' names
Anna vs Parker
#107 vs #106 in 2025
Parker is a whisker ahead (#106 vs #107 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Parker is climbing the charts fast, Anna is stepping back from its peak.
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
The tape is even: Anna and Parker each lead 3 measures of 6.
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: Anna #2, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1890s: Anna #2, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1900s: Anna #4, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1910s: Anna #7, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1920s: Anna #14, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1930s: Anna #32, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1940s: Anna #74, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1950s: Anna #101, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1960s: Anna #98, Parker — — Anna higher
- 1970s: Anna #82, Parker #8407 — Anna higher
- 1980s: Anna #54, Parker #6708 — Anna higher
- 1990s: Anna #39, Parker #2173 — Anna higher
- 2000s: Anna #23, Parker #679 — Anna higher
- 2010s: Anna #43, Parker #261 — Anna higher
- 2020s: Anna #86, Parker #115 — Anna higher
Anna stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Anna | Parker |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #2 | — |
| 1890s | #2 | — |
| 1900s | #4 | — |
| 1910s | #7 | — |
| 1920s | #14 | — |
| 1930s | #32 | — |
| 1940s | #74 | — |
| 1950s | #101 | — |
| 1960s | #98 | — |
| 1970s | #82 | #8407 |
| 1980s | #54 | #6708 |
| 1990s | #39 | #2173 |
| 2000s | #23 | #679 |
| 2010s | #43 | #261 |
| 2020s | #86 | #115 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Anna
- France#15
- Canada#51
- Scotland#54
Parker
Not charting outside the US.
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Anna
grace, favor
Anna is the Greek and Latin rendering of Hebrew Ḥannāh, from a root meaning grace or favor.
Ḥannāh → Hanna → Anna → Anne → Ann
How it traveled
The Hebrew name Ḥannāh belonged to the mother of the prophet Samuel; when Jewish scholars translated their scriptures into Greek, they wrote it Anna, and that form entered Latin and then all of Christian Europe. A prophetess named Anna appears in the Gospel of Luke, and Christian tradition gave the name to the mother of Mary, which sent it into the calendars of saints and from there into ordinary use in nearly every European language.
Parker
keeper of the park; park-keeper or gamekeeper
A medieval park was not a public green but an enclosed hunting ground held by a lord, and the parker was the officer in charge of it. The word reached English through Old French and Medieval Latin terms for the same office.
parcarius (Medieval Latin, park-keeper) → parquier (Old French) → Parker (Middle English surname) → Parker (given name, North America)
How it traveled
The root is Medieval Latin parcarius, a park-keeper, which came into Old French as parquier and into Middle English as parker. By the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries it had hardened into a hereditary English surname, one of the great family of occupational names alongside Baker, Miller and Fletcher.
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
Anna
AN-uh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Much of continental Europe says AH-nah, with a broader first vowel — both are the same name, and speakers switch between them without difficulty.
- Annie — The long-standing English short form, and a registered given name in its own right for well over a century.
- Anya — The Russian diminutive, used independently as a given name in English-speaking countries.
- Ania — Standard Polish diminutive, informal, used at home and among friends.
- Nan — An older English short form from the Ann/Anna family; now mostly heard among earlier generations.
- Also Annushka, Anni.
Parker
PAR-ker
Stress on the first syllable. One pronunciation, no regional variants worth worrying about beyond how strongly the r's are sounded.
- Park — The most common short form; also exists independently as a surname and, rarely, a given name.
- Parks — Informal, playful, used within families rather than on paper.
- P — Initial-only nickname, informal and usually short-lived.
Who has carried each name
Anna
Anna Kendrick (b. 1985) — Pitch Perfect star
Anna Wintour (b. 1949) — Vogue's legendary editor-in-chief
Anna Pavlova (b. 1882) — The ballerina so famous a dessert was named after her
Parker
Parker Posey (b. 1968) — Indie film's "Queen of the Indies" and The White Lotus star
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 Anna if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsAnna is stepping back from its peak
- plenty of nickname options6 recorded short forms — Annie, Anya and Ania
- a name that charts abroad tooAnna is on the national lists of France, Canada and Scotland
- a long American recordAnna was already in use when US records began in 1880
Choose Parker if you want…
- a name on the way upup 22 places on the charts in five years
- a newer arrivalParker entered the US charts in 1970
- a name that feels very nowParker is climbing the charts fast
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
Anna
Strengths
- Spelled the same in English, German, Italian, Polish, Russian, Hungarian, Greek and the Nordic languages — no adaptation needed when it crosses a border.
- Everyone can spell it on the first try, and it fits any form field.
- Established short forms already exist: Annie, Anya, Ania, Nan — no need to invent one.
To consider
- Ana, Anne and Hannah are all in circulation and all sound close, so she may spend a lifetime confirming the spelling — usually with one short sentence rather than a struggle.
- In the United States it has a long history behind it, and a great many living Annas were named generations ago. That gives the name real depth; it also means she may meet more grown Annas than young ones.
- Four letters and two soft syllables can blur against a very short surname. Saying the full name aloud a few times settles the question quickly.
Parker
Strengths
- One spelling, one pronunciation — most people can both say it and write it after hearing it once.
- Serves a boy or a girl without any change in form, which is unusual among names this familiar.
- A documented history stretching back to medieval English occupational surnames, so it is not a coinage that will date to a decade.
To consider
- It still reads as a surname to many ears, which means occasional confusion on forms, rosters and email address generators where first and last names get swapped.
- The lean is toward boys. A girl named Parker will sometimes be assumed male on paper before anyone meets her — manageable, but worth knowing.
- It sits among a crowd of two-syllable -er surnames now used as first names, so it may be heard as part of that group rather than as its own thing.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Anna
12%chance Anna feels dated by 2040
Anna has held the top-100 across 14 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
Parker
49%chance Parker feels dated by 2040
Parker is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
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 Anna and Parker 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 Anna and Parker?
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 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 Anna and Parker — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Anna or Parker — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Anna or Parker?
- Parker, in 2025: Parker ranked #106 with 2,536 babies; Anna ranked #107 with 2,521 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Anna or Parker?
- Parker. Over the last five years Anna moved down 39 places; Parker moved up 22 places.
- Which is the older name, Anna or Parker?
- Anna was already in use when US records began in 1880; Parker entered the US charts in 1970. On the American record, Anna is the older name.
- How many people are named Anna and Parker?
- About 445,000 people named Anna are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 32,500 people named Parker are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Annas or Parkers in the classroom?
- Anna will almost certainly be the only one in school. Parker 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
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