Head to head · Girls' names
Briella vs Matilda
#362 vs #364 in 2025
Briella is a whisker ahead (#362 vs #364 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Briella is stepping back from its peak, Matilda is back after a long quiet spell. On momentum, Matilda has the edge.
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, Matilda leads 4 measures of 6; Briella 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
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Briella —, Matilda #110 — Matilda higher
- 1890s: Briella —, Matilda #138 — Matilda higher
- 1900s: Briella —, Matilda #178 — Matilda higher
- 1910s: Briella —, Matilda #235 — Matilda higher
- 1920s: Briella —, Matilda #300 — Matilda higher
- 1930s: Briella —, Matilda #470 — Matilda higher
- 1940s: Briella —, Matilda #690 — Matilda higher
- 1950s: Briella —, Matilda #895 — Matilda higher
- 1960s: Briella —, Matilda #1106 — Matilda higher
- 1970s: Briella —, Matilda #1649 — Matilda higher
- 1980s: Briella —, Matilda #2757 — Matilda higher
- 1990s: Briella #9269, Matilda #2921 — Matilda higher
- 2000s: Briella #3806, Matilda #1502 — Matilda higher
- 2010s: Briella #403, Matilda #594 — Briella higher
- 2020s: Briella #352, Matilda #429 — Briella higher
Matilda stood higher in 13 of 15 decades; Briella has held the lead since the 2010s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Briella | Matilda |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #110 |
| 1890s | — | #138 |
| 1900s | — | #178 |
| 1910s | — | #235 |
| 1920s | — | #300 |
| 1930s | — | #470 |
| 1940s | — | #690 |
| 1950s | — | #895 |
| 1960s | — | #1106 |
| 1970s | — | #1649 |
| 1980s | — | #2757 |
| 1990s | #9269 | #2921 |
| 2000s | #3806 | #1502 |
| 2010s | #403 | #594 |
| 2020s | #352 | #429 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Briella
Not charting outside the US.
Matilda
- England & Wales#31
- Scotland#93
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Briella
Not established
No meaning has been established for Briella. What is documented is its shape: the Bri- opening it shares with Brianna, Bria and Brielle, and the -ella ending it shares with Gabriella, Isabella and Arabella. Names in that family carry meanings of their own, but Briella has never been reliably traced to any one of them, so no translation can honestly be attached to it.
Our story of Briella — where the record runs out
Some names come down through manuscripts and kings; this one came together in American nurseries, within living memory. Both of its halves were already here and already loved — Bri from Brianna and Brielle, and the -ella ending that Ella, Isabella and Gabriella had made one of the most familiar sounds in the country.
Matilda
mighty in battle
From the Germanic elements *maht* "might, strength" and *hild* "battle", combined in the old name Mahthildis.
Mahthildis → Mathilde → Matilda → Maud
How it traveled
The name began as Germanic Mahthildis and was borne by a tenth-century German queen later honored as a saint. It reached England in Latin form after 1066 with Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror, and was carried by their granddaughter Empress Matilda, whose claim to the English crown set off the civil war of the twelfth century.
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
Briella
bree-EL-uh
Three syllables, stress in the middle. The spelling reads the way it sounds for English speakers, so mispronunciation is uncommon even on a first meeting.
- Bri — The most common short form; also used on its own as a given name, and shared with Brianna and Brielle.
- Ella — Taken from the second half; a long-established given name in its own right in English.
- Brie — Same sound as Bri, spelled the French way; also appears as Bree.
- Ellie — Informal, built from the ending; widely used among children today.
- Also Bella.
Matilda
muh-TIL-duh
Stress on the middle syllable. The German and French Mathilde is closer to ma-TILL-duh or ma-TEELD, if relatives abroad reach for that version.
- Tilly — The most common short form in British and Australian use, and given independently as a full name too.
- Tillie — Older American spelling of the same short form; also stands alone as a given name.
- Mattie — Informal, long-established in American use, shared with Martha and Matthew.
- Tilda — Used on its own in Scandinavia as well as as a short form of Matilda.
- Also Maud.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Briella if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsBriella is stepping back from its peak
- a name with fewer syllablesBriella is 2 syllables to Matilda's 3
- a newer arrivalBriella entered the US charts in 1993
Choose Matilda if you want…
- a name on the way upup 114 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itMatilda runs 3 syllables, Briella 2
- a name that charts abroad tooMatilda is on the national lists of England & Wales and Scotland
- a long American recordMatilda 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
Briella
Strengths
- Two ready-made short forms, Bri and Ella, both of which already stand alone as given names.
- Reads the way it sounds in English, so it rarely needs to be pronounced twice.
- Sits inside a well-known family of names — Ella, Isabella, Gabriella — so it registers as familiar even to people meeting it for the first time.
To consider
- It lives close to several established names — Brielle, Bria, Brianna, Gabriella — and will sometimes be heard or written as one of them. Expect a certain amount of gentle correcting.
- There is no documented meaning to hand a curious child later on. If a settled origin story matters to you, this name cannot supply one honestly.
- The wave is very recent, so nearly everyone carrying it is still young. The name places a birth era fairly precisely, in the way that Linda or Ashley once did.
Matilda
Strengths
- An unbroken record in English since the Norman Conquest — long past the point where any fashion cycle can date it.
- Recognizable in German, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish and Scandinavian forms, so it travels without translation.
- Several established short forms already in real use — Tilly, Tillie, Mattie, Tilda — none of which need explaining.
To consider
- Roald Dahl's novel and its film and stage versions are the first thing many people will mention. It is affectionate rather than awkward, but expect it often.
- Mathilda, Mathilde and Matilde are all real spellings elsewhere, so the double-check question will come up on forms and rosters for life.
- The full name is still strongly represented among the oldest generations in the US, which is exactly what makes it read as vintage now — worth knowing if you would rather a name with no grandmotherly echo at all.
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 Briella and Matilda 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 Briella and Matilda?
Put both to the vote.
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Names ending in -ella / -elle
- Names ending in -la
- Vintage names making a comeback
- Grandmother-chic: 1920s names ready to return
- all guides
Where Briella and Matilda each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Briella or Matilda — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Briella or Matilda?
- Briella, in 2025: Briella ranked #362 with 845 babies; Matilda ranked #364 with 838 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Briella or Matilda?
- Matilda. Over the last five years Briella moved down 65 places; Matilda moved up 114 places.
- Which is the older name, Briella or Matilda?
- Briella entered the US charts in 1993; Matilda was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Matilda is the older name.
- How many people are named Briella and Matilda?
- About 15,000 people named Briella are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 16,000 people named Matilda are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Briellas or Matildas in the classroom?
- Briella will almost certainly be the only one in school. Matilda 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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