Alva
Feminine · “white”
Alva is given to both — 8,889 girls and 11,269 boys since 1880. See Alva as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Alva is Hebrew and Latin at once — a place name in Genesis and a Latin word for white — and English spelling has never separated the two.
How old is the name Alva?
Alva was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Alva alive today was born around 1930, making them about 95 years old. About 3,300 people named Alva are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Alva most popular?
Alva peaked in 1896, reaching #334 nationally. Today it ranks #5554, 5,220 places below that high. See the whole 1896 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From albus to Alva
The story of Alva
Alva appears in American records for both sexes from the 1880s, part of the same wave that produced Alma, Alta and Elva. Thomas Alva Edison carried it as a middle name and gave it wide visibility. The feminine use ran alongside the masculine through the period, and feminine Alva peaked around 1890.
Meaningscholars disagree
white; brightness
Two routes. The Hebrew Alvah appears in Genesis as an Edomite chief and a place name, of unrecovered meaning. The Latin albus, 'white', gives the Spanish alba, 'dawn', and the same sound. A Scottish place name Alva is a third. None of the three can be ruled out.
How the name formed
- albus
- Alva
Related forms: Alba · Alva · Alvah
Pronouncing Alva
AL-vuh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Swedish says AHL-va with a fuller first vowel.
Nicknames for Alva
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
- 1918196 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #334reached in 1896
- Change vs 2022
- −24.1%22 in 2025, from 29
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.
Alva in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Alba in Spanish — related form
- Alva in Swedish — same name
- Alvah in Hebrew — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Alvas among us
people named Alva are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 73,058 born in 2025 was named Alva
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
Alva 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
Alva beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Alva in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Three genuine traditions can claim it — Hebrew, Latin and Scottish.
- It is a current and fashionable name in Sweden.
- Four letters, two syllables, and never misheard.
- The origin is genuinely split three ways.
- It reads as unisex in American records.
- It is strongly period-coded to the nineteenth century.
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Alva
Feminine · #5554 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Alvas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,300 people named Alva are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Alva in 2025?
- Alva ranks #5554 among US girl names in 2025, with 22 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Alva?
- About 1 in every 73,058 US girls born in 2025 was named Alva — 22 in all.
- Will my child share the name Alva with classmates?
- Alva will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Alva
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Eda#5554 · Phebe#5554 · Felicia#5554 · Audie#5554 · Maryellen#5554 · Warren#5554 · Ruthann#5554 · Nettie#5554
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Alva? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Alva and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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