Head to head · Girls' names
Elliott vs Estrella
#599 vs #612 in 2025
Elliott is a whisker ahead (#599 vs #612 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Elliott is stepping back from its peak, Estrella is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Estrella 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, Estrella leads 4 measures of 6; Elliott 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
- 1910s: Elliott #3976, Estrella #3681 — Estrella higher
- 1920s: Elliott #4804, Estrella #4195 — Estrella higher
- 1930s: Elliott #4255, Estrella #3681 — Estrella higher
- 1940s: Elliott #4417, Estrella #4183 — Estrella higher
- 1950s: Elliott #6086, Estrella #3605 — Estrella higher
- 1960s: Elliott #6592, Estrella #3895 — Estrella higher
- 1970s: Elliott #7863, Estrella #2713 — Estrella higher
- 1980s: Elliott #7632, Estrella #1655 — Estrella higher
- 1990s: Elliott #6210, Estrella #1144 — Estrella higher
- 2000s: Elliott #3215, Estrella #506 — Estrella higher
- 2010s: Elliott #810, Estrella #712 — Estrella higher
- 2020s: Elliott #590, Estrella #676 — Elliott higher
Estrella stood higher in 11 of 12 decades; Elliott took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Elliott | Estrella |
|---|---|---|
| 1910s | #3976 | #3681 |
| 1920s | #4804 | #4195 |
| 1930s | #4255 | #3681 |
| 1940s | #4417 | #4183 |
| 1950s | #6086 | #3605 |
| 1960s | #6592 | #3895 |
| 1970s | #7863 | #2713 |
| 1980s | #7632 | #1655 |
| 1990s | #6210 | #1144 |
| 2000s | #3215 | #506 |
| 2010s | #810 | #712 |
| 2020s | #590 | #676 |
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
Elliott
From a medieval English form of Elias — that is, Elijah, Hebrew for "my God is Yahweh"
The main line is clear: the surname Elliott comes from Elyot/Eliot, a medieval English pet form of Elias, the Greek and Latin spelling of Elijah. A smaller share of Elliott families trace instead to the Old English personal name Ælfwald, "elf-ruler." Both routes are documented, and a given Elliott today can honestly claim either.
Eliyahu → Elias → Elyot → Eliot → Elliott
How it traveled
Elijah reached western Europe as Elias, through the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible and then the Latin one, and medieval English speakers clipped and softened it into Elyot. Names like that hardened into hereditary surnames in England and along the Scottish border, where Elliot became one of the great riding-clan names of the frontier country.
Estrella
Star
From Spanish estrella, descended from Latin stella.
stella (Latin) → Stella Maris → estrella (Spanish) → Estrella
How it traveled
The root is Latin stella, which passed into Spanish as estrella and into French as estoile, later étoile. As a personal name it grew out of Catholic Marian devotion: Mary is addressed as Stella Maris, star of the sea, in the medieval Latin hymn Ave Maris Stella, and Spanish churches honored her under titles such as Nuestra Señora de la Estrella.
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
Elliott
EL-ee-ut
Stress on the first syllable. All three spellings — Elliott, Elliot, Eliot — are said the same way, and the final syllable is a light "ut," not "ott."
- Eli — The most common short form, and a fully established given name in its own right, so an Elliott who uses it will meet others who were christened Eli.
- Ell — Informal, family-and-friends use; works equally for a boy or a girl.
- Ellie — Used mainly for girls named Elliott; almost always informal.
- Elliott — Frequently used in full, including in casual speech — the name resists shortening more than most three-syllable names.
Estrella
es-TREH-yah
That is the Spanish pronunciation, with the double L sounded as a Y across most of the Spanish-speaking world. English speakers commonly say ess-TREL-uh instead. Both are in real use in the US, and many families answer to whichever the speaker offers.
- Estrellita — The standard Spanish diminutive, used affectionately within families rather than as a legal name.
- Stella — Used as an English-facing short form, and a long-established given name in its own right.
- Ella — Informal, drawn from the end of the name; also stands alone as a given name in English.
- Estre — A clipped, informal form heard among friends and classmates.
- Also Essy.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Elliott if you want…
- a name most people already know#599 in 2025, 489 babies that year
- a name past its most crowded yearsElliott is stepping back from its peak
Choose Estrella if you want…
- a name fewer children share#612 in 2025 — estrella will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name on the way upup 127 places on the charts in five years
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
Elliott
Strengths
- An unbroken presence in American records since counting began, without ever spiking into a fashion — the curve beside you is unusually level for a name this familiar.
- Instantly recognizable and easy to say on first hearing, with no pronunciation to teach anyone.
- Eli is a ready-made short form that stands on its own, so the name comes with a built-in casual register.
To consider
- Three spellings compete — Elliott, Elliot, Eliot — and all three are legitimate. Expect a lifetime of "two Ls and two Ts," and of mail arriving with one of each.
- For a girl, this is the same surname traveling the other way rather than a separate name, and most people will assume a boy on paper. That is workable, but worth deciding on deliberately rather than being surprised by it.
- The short form Eli sits in a crowded neighborhood with Eli, Elijah and Elias, so an Elliott who goes by Eli may not be the only one in the room even if the full name is.
Estrella
Strengths
- The meaning is transparent to any Spanish speaker — no explanation needed, in a language spoken by tens of millions in the US.
- It connects to a whole family of familiar names — Stella, Estelle, Estella — so short forms and English-facing alternatives already exist.
- The spelling follows Spanish rules exactly, so it is written correctly on the first try by anyone who reads Spanish.
To consider
- Two pronunciations circulate: the Spanish es-TREH-yah and the anglicized ess-TREL-uh. Your daughter will hear both, and will likely spend her life deciding, case by case, whether to correct people or let it go.
- English speakers who do not know the name may reach for Estella, Estela or Estrela when writing it down. The correction is small but frequent.
- In Spanish it is not only a name but an ordinary word for star, the way Star is in English. Within Spanish-speaking families this is entirely normal; outside them it can register as a word name.
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 Elliott and Estrella 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 Elliott and Estrella?
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 these names appear on
- Names ending in -tt
- Names ranked #601–1000: known, but barely shared
- Celestial names: written in the stars
- Spanish and Latin names with warmth
- all guides
Where Elliott and Estrella each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Elliott or Estrella — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Elliott or Estrella?
- Elliott, in 2025: Elliott ranked #599 with 489 babies; Estrella ranked #612 with 477 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Elliott or Estrella?
- Estrella. Over the last five years Elliott moved down 113 places; Estrella moved up 127 places.
- Which is the older name, Elliott or Estrella?
- Elliott entered the US charts in 1917; Estrella entered the US charts in 1914. On the American record, Estrella is the older name.
- How many people are named Elliott and Estrella?
- About 8,100 people named Elliott are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 16,500 people named Estrella are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Elliotts or Estrellas in the classroom?
- Elliott will almost certainly be the only one in school. Estrella 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
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