Girl · #8 in 2026

Evelyn

Evelyn is a matronymic English surname derived from the medieval girl's name Aveline. Since the 17th century, it has also been used as a given name. The earliest recorded bearer was Evelyn Pierrepont, who was a grandson of the Roundhead politician Sir John Evelyn. The family subsequently used the name for both male and female children, including Pierrepont's third daughter.

  • English
  • German
Current Rank
#8
Peak Rank
#8 (1921)
Total Babies
649K
5-Yr Trend
-10%
1880
First Year
2026
Last Year
1921
Peak Year
#8
Peak Rank
649K
Total Count
147
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Evelyn

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Evelyn is a matronymic English surname derived from the medieval girl's name Aveline. Since the 17th century, it has also been used as a given name. The earliest recorded bearer was Evelyn Pierrepont, who was a grandson of the Roundhead politician Sir John Evelyn. The family subsequently used the name for both male and female children, including Pierrepont's third daughter.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • English
  • German

The Story of Evelyn

Evelyn first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 122 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1921, when 14,278 Evelyns were born — ranking #12 that year. As of 2026, Evelyn ranks #8 for baby girls with 8,993 births, gradually falling (-10%). In total, more than 649K Evelyns have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Variants & Related Forms of Evelyn

Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Evelyn. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Where is Evelyn most common?

Predicted country distribution based on naming patterns globally.

  • GH
    33%
  • Nigeria
    24%
  • UG
    18%
  • China
    13%
  • Saint Lucia
    12%

Source: Nationalize.io . Probabilities are global naming-pattern estimates, not strict counts.

Names that sound like Evelyn

Phonetically similar names — useful when Evelyn is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Evelyn

What does the name Evelyn mean?
Evelyn is a matronymic English surname derived from the medieval girl's name Aveline. Since the 17th century, it has also been used as a given name. The earliest recorded bearer was Evelyn Pierrepont, who was a grandson of the Roundhead politician Sir John Evelyn. The family subsequently used the name for both male and female children, including Pierrepont's third daughter.
What is the origin of the name Evelyn?
Evelyn has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: English, German.
How popular is Evelyn in 2026?
In 2026, Evelyn ranks #8 among girls' names in the U.S., with 8,993 babies given the name that year.
When was Evelyn most popular?
Evelyn reached its peak popularity in 1921, ranking #8 that year with 14,278 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Evelyn most popular?
Evelyn has historically been most popular in Alaska, Maine, Minnesota. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Evelyn.
Is Evelyn a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Evelyn is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Evelyn?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Evelyn include Alice, Annie, Frances. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.
What are nicknames or variants of Evelyn?
Common variants and related forms of Evelyn include Avalynn, Evaline, Evalyn, Eveleen, Eveline, Evelynn. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

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About the name Evelyn

Evelyn is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 649K births in the dataset. Evelyn's peak popularity came in 1921 when it ranked #8. Use the chart and map above to compare Evelyn's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.