Elif
Feminine · “the letter alif”
Elif is the first letter of the Arabic alphabet — alif, a single upright stroke, which Turkish poetry uses as the image of a slender figure.
How old is the name Elif?
Elif first appears in US birth records in 1977 — 48 years ago. The typical Elif is a kid of about 9 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,500 people named Elif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Elif most popular?
Elif peaked in 2024, reaching #1753 nationally. Today it ranks #1911, 158 places below that high. See the whole 2024 chart.
Elif appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From alif to Elif
The story of Elif
Alif is the first letter of the Arabic abjad and the first of the mysterious letters that open several Quranic suras. Ottoman poets compared a beloved's figure to its single stroke, and Elif became one of the most-used Turkish girls' names — it has topped the Turkish list repeatedly. It appears in American records in current use.
Meaning
the letter alif; slender
From the Arabic alif, the first letter of the alphabet and a single vertical stroke. Turkish took it as Elif. Ottoman poetry used the letter's shape as a standing image for a slim upright figure, which is why the name means both the letter and slenderness. The reading is documented.
How the name formed
- alif
- Elif
Related forms: Elif · ألف · Elif
Pronouncing Elif
eh-LEEF
Two syllables, stress on the second. Turkish says it the same way with a crisper first vowel.
Nicknames for Elif
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
- 1977
- Most girls named
- 2024115 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1753reached in 2024
- Change vs 2024
- −12.2%101 in 2025, from 115
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.
Elif in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Elif in Turkish — same name
- ألف in Arabic — related form
- Elif in Azerbaijani — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, California, Florida.
Elifs among us
people named Elif are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 15,914 born in 2025 was named Elif
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Lateefah test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Elif's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Lateefah climbed just as high around 1979, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Lateefah's path sketches the road Elif is walking now.
Elif 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
Where Elif is headed
Elif looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 24% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Elif beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Elif in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That a letter's shape became an image for a figure is a genuinely elegant piece of poetics.
- It has repeatedly been the most-used girls' name in Turkey.
- The end stress gives it a strong rhythm against a front-stressed surname.
- It reads as specifically Turkish.
- Eli is a masculine name in English, which the clipping produces.
- It is very short and can be swallowed by a long surname.
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Elif
Feminine · #1911 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Elifs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,500 people named Elif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Elif in 2025?
- Elif ranks #1911 among US girl names in 2025, with 101 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Elif?
- About 1 in every 15,914 US girls born in 2025 was named Elif — 101 in all.
- Will my child share the name Elif with classmates?
- Elif will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Elif
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Susie#1911 · Wesley#1911 · Carlee#1911 · Sahana#1911 · Chosen#1911 · Philomena#1911 · Valkyrie#1911 · Jazzlyn#1911
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Elif? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Elif and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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