Alpha
Feminine · “first”
Alpha is given to both — 7,188 girls and 2,857 boys since 1880. See Alpha as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet used as a name, and the reason it works is a line in Revelation: 'I am the Alpha and the Omega' — the beginning and the end.
How old is the name Alpha?
Alpha was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Alpha alive today was born around 1921, making them about 104 years old. About 1,400 people named Alpha are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Alpha most popular?
Alpha peaked in 1881, reaching #301 nationally. Today it ranks #13208, 12,907 places below that high. See the whole 1881 chart.
Where it comes from
From aleph to Alpha
The story of Alpha
Nineteenth-century American families named children from every part of the Bible, including its images and its vocabulary, and Alpha and Omega both appear in the registers — sometimes for a first and a last child, which is a naming logic with a real internal consistency. Alpha was also used by families who simply liked classical vocabulary. It peaked around 1890.
Meaning
first, beginning
From the Greek letter alpha, which Greek took from the Phoenician aleph, 'ox' — the letter began as a picture of an ox's head. The name's sense of 'first' comes from its position in the alphabet and from the Revelation phrase, not from the Phoenician word.
How the name formed
- aleph
- alpha
- Alpha
Related forms: Ἄλφα · Aleph · Omega
Pronouncing Alpha
AL-fuh
Two syllables, stress on the first. It is an ordinary English word and is never mispronounced.
Nicknames for Alpha
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 1915182 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #301reached in 1881
- Change vs 2022
- −25.0%6 in 2025, from 8
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Alpha in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Ἄλφα in Greek — transliteration
- Aleph in Hebrew — related form
- Omega in English — related form
Alphas among us
people named Alpha are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 267,878 born in 2025 was named Alpha
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Alpha 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.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Alpha beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Alpha in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is transparent and the Revelation phrase gives it a genuinely striking anchor.
- The letter's own history — a Phoenician ox's head — is a remarkable thing to carry.
- Two firm syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- The word now carries strong technical and behavioral senses in modern English.
- It was used for both sexes in American records.
- It is strongly period-coded to the late nineteenth century.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Alpha
Feminine · #13208 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Alphas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,400 people named Alpha are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Alpha in 2025?
- Alpha ranks #13208 among US girl names in 2025, with 6 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Alpha?
- About 1 in every 267,878 US girls born in 2025 was named Alpha — 6 in all.
- Will my child share the name Alpha with classmates?
- Alpha will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Alpha
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
John#13208 · Vinnie#13208 · Margery#13208 · Jossie#13208 · Tressa#13208 · Erie#13208 · Bernadine#13208 · Euna#13208
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Alpha? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Alpha and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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