Head to head · Boys' names
Elliott vs Juan
#160 vs #159 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Juan is a whisker ahead (#159 vs #160 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, Juan leads 4 measures of 6; Elliott leads 0.
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: Elliott #413, Juan #226 — Juan higher
- 1890s: Elliott #383, Juan #234 — Juan higher
- 1900s: Elliott #396, Juan #198 — Juan higher
- 1910s: Elliott #427, Juan #238 — Juan higher
- 1920s: Elliott #435, Juan #198 — Juan higher
- 1930s: Elliott #429, Juan #194 — Juan higher
- 1940s: Elliott #389, Juan #180 — Juan higher
- 1950s: Elliott #475, Juan #155 — Juan higher
- 1960s: Elliott #500, Juan #137 — Juan higher
- 1970s: Elliott #526, Juan #68 — Juan higher
- 1980s: Elliott #391, Juan #63 — Juan higher
- 1990s: Elliott #455, Juan #54 — Juan higher
- 2000s: Elliott #451, Juan #58 — Juan higher
- 2010s: Elliott #227, Juan #111 — Juan higher
- 2020s: Elliott #164, Juan #148 — Juan higher
Juan stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Elliott | Juan |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #413 | #226 |
| 1890s | #383 | #234 |
| 1900s | #396 | #198 |
| 1910s | #427 | #238 |
| 1920s | #435 | #198 |
| 1930s | #429 | #194 |
| 1940s | #389 | #180 |
| 1950s | #475 | #155 |
| 1960s | #500 | #137 |
| 1970s | #526 | #68 |
| 1980s | #391 | #63 |
| 1990s | #455 | #54 |
| 2000s | #451 | #58 |
| 2010s | #227 | #111 |
| 2020s | #164 | #148 |
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.
Juan
God has been gracious
From the Hebrew name behind John, through Greek and Latin into Spanish. It is the shortest surviving form of what is probably the most-used name in European history.
Yohanan → Iohannes → Juan
How it traveled
Tirso de Molina's play gave Europe a character and a phrase, and the character escaped almost immediately: within fifty years there were French and Italian versions, within two hundred there was an opera that is still performed constantly, and by the nineteenth century the name was a common noun for a particular kind of man. None of that has much to do with the name itself, which was and is one of the most ordinary in the Spanish-speaking world — the equivalent of John, given to millions of men who have never given the play a thought.
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.
Juan
HWAHN
One syllable in Spanish, beginning with a throaty h and a glide. American English often gives it two, WAHN or hoo-AHN.
- Juanito — The standard Spanish diminutive; used inside families.
- Juancho — An affectionate form used in parts of Latin America.
- Johnny — The English familiar form, used by bilingual families.
Who has carried each name
Elliott
Elliott Smith (b. 1969) — Indie songwriting legend ("Miss Misery")
Elliott Gould (b. 1938) — M*A*S*H star
Juan
Juan Ponce de León (b. 1460) — Searched Florida for the fountain of youth
Juan Sebastián Elcano (b. 1486) — Completed the first voyage around the world
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 Elliott if you want…
- a name with more sound in itElliott runs 3 syllables, Juan 1
Choose Juan if you want…
- a name holding steadyJuan is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesJuan is 1 syllable to Elliott's 3
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.
Juan
Strengths
- It is understood on sight across the entire Spanish-speaking world.
- It has a form in every European language, which almost no other name can claim.
- Four letters and one syllable, which sits well in front of any surname.
To consider
- English speakers regularly lose the h at the front or add a syllable.
- The Don Juan reference is unavoidable and not always welcome.
- In many Spanish-speaking families the name is expected as a compound, Juan Carlos or Juan Pablo.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Elliott
40%chance Elliott feels dated by 2040
Elliott sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
Juan
25%chance Juan feels dated by 2040
Juan peaked long ago yet still holds steady — names that survive their own wave usually settle into quiet, durable classics.
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 Elliott and Juan 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 Juan?
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 these names appear on
- Vowel names: soft starts from A to O
- The steadiest names in America
- Three-syllable names with room to move
- Seven-letter names, ranked by real use
- all guides
Where Elliott and Juan each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Elliott or Juan — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Elliott or Juan?
- Juan, in 2025: Juan ranked #159 with 2,318 babies; Elliott ranked #160 with 2,287 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Elliott or Juan?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Elliott moved down 2 places; Juan moved down 14 places.
- Which is the older name, Elliott or Juan?
- The US record cannot say: both were already in use when it began in 1880.
- How many people are named Elliott and Juan?
- About 54,000 people named Elliott are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 323,000 people named Juan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Elliotts or Juans in the classroom?
- Elliott will almost certainly be the only one in school. Juan 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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