Alexander Name Meaning, Origin, Popularity, Boy Names Like Alexander

Alexander Name Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: ahl-ex-an-der
See what 32 people think about Alexander

Meaning
Share
Popularity
Alternatives
Lists
Comments

Alexander Name Meaning

Meaning “defender of man,” Alexander is a Greek name that holds many places in history from mighty rulers like Alexander the Great to wonderous inventors like Alexander Graham Bell, all steps ahead of their time in their achievements. The name has stood the test of time, remaining a tried and true favorite in a number of countries and cultures across the world.

Alexander stands easily among the classics like Michael and Matthew yet remains heads above the competition when it comes to pure strength. Like Maximilian, the name has a silent strength that precedes him, projecting authority with ease. A little Alexander isn’t one to fall in line; he’s the one to draw the line for others’ to follow.

Alexander is a classic name choice, never falling victim to seeming trendy or dated. He’s held firm in popularity, not once slipping out of the U.S. Top 500 since the list started in 1900. He remains an easy choice for many, a recognizable name brimming with history.

Behind his formality lies a treasure trove of nicknames including Xander, Alex, and Lex as well as the unexpected Sasha, a common choice in Russia. He also has several variants like Alessandro, Alejandro, Alec, and Sander. Alexander has several female variants including Alexandra, Alexandria, and Alexa.

Alexander Name Popularity

How popular is the name Alexander? Here’s everything we know.

Year	Rank	# Births	% Births
1910	101	280	0.0795%
1911	95	381	0.1023%
1912	97	773	0.1533%
1913	99	903	0.1593%
1914	98	1,133	0.1626%
1915	102	1,417	0.156%
1916	99	1,563	0.1618%
1917	97	1,654	0.1653%
1918	104	1,564	0.1457%
1919	112	1,407	0.1344%
1920	117	1,438	0.1293%
1921	115	1,514	0.1322%
1922	124	1,332	0.1196%
1923	130	1,262	0.1127%
1924	129	1,354	0.1166%
1925	138	1,193	0.1055%
1926	146	1,114	0.1013%
1927	146	1,061	0.0959%
1928	153	1,003	0.0937%
1929	155	965	0.0932%
1930	169	823	0.0788%
1931	172	762	0.0772%
1932	178	743	0.0752%
1933	188	624	0.067%
1934	203	573	0.0593%
1935	188	654	0.0673%
1936	201	580	0.0602%
1937	195	619	0.0628%
1938	197	621	0.0607%
1939	188	685	0.0673%
1940	187	725	0.0682%
1941	185	771	0.0685%
1942	186	828	0.0656%
1943	178	890	0.0682%
1944	184	822	0.0663%
1945	178	853	0.0699%
1946	188	930	0.063%
1947	190	1,057	0.0633%
1948	182	1,109	0.0695%
1949	180	1,151	0.0716%
1950	190	1,123	0.0697%
1951	190	1,177	0.0694%
1952	187	1,251	0.0717%
1953	195	1,232	0.0696%
1954	202	1,210	0.0662%
1955	210	1,140	0.062%
1956	210	1,208	0.064%
1957	214	1,220	0.0634%
1958	225	1,142	0.0604%
1959	237	1,125	0.0592%
1960	234	1,156	0.061%
1961	225	1,195	0.0633%
1962	222	1,191	0.0649%
1963	215	1,273	0.0709%
1964	213	1,257	0.0714%
1965	192	1,294	0.0791%
1966	183	1,335	0.0855%
1967	180	1,419	0.0935%
1968	154	1,745	0.1162%
1969	150	2,004	0.1301%
1970	136	2,463	0.1548%
1971	134	2,352	0.1565%
1972	129	2,102	0.1543%
1973	115	2,239	0.1727%
1974	112	2,347	0.1806%
1975	104	2,434	0.1894%
1976	107	2,439	0.1892%
1977	97	2,695	0.1999%
1978	98	2,738	0.2037%
1979	94	3,060	0.217%
1980	91	3,276	0.2241%
1981	70	4,236	0.2882%
1982	65	4,589	0.3071%
1983	63	4,805	0.3256%
1984	54	6,491	0.4363%
1985	50	8,290	0.5462%
1986	41	10,600	0.7022%
1987	37	11,835	0.7755%
1988	34	13,330	0.8554%
1989	32	14,520	0.8998%
1990	28	16,185	0.9765%
1991	26	17,637	1.0821%
1992	23	20,063	1.257%
1993	21	20,522	1.3163%
1994	22	20,098	1.3096%
1995	21	19,446	1.2903%
1996	22	17,960	1.1995%
1997	22	17,110	1.1569%
1998	22	17,464	1.1668%
1999	21	17,416	1.163%
2000	20	17,282	1.1313%
2001	20	16,716	1.1094%
2002	15	17,713	1.182%
2003	16	17,707	1.1639%
2004	15	17,922	1.1759%
2005	12	18,117	1.1849%
2006	12	18,220	1.1636%
2007	11	18,133	1.1493%
2008	6	18,693	1.2094%
2009	4	18,227	1.2195%
2010	6	16,752	1.1625%
2011	8	15,700	1.102%
2012	9	15,232	1.0689%
2013	8	14,900	1.0465%
2014	8	15,406	1.0574%
2015	8	14,531	0.9987%
2016	11	13,388	0.9286%
2017	13	12,467	0.8932%
2018	11	11,989	0.8726%
2019	11	11,230	0.8296%
2020	10	10,008	0.7863%
2021	13	9,344	0.7644%
2022	17	8,570	0.6496%

Alaska (AK)

Alabama (AL)

Arkansas (AR)

Arizona (AZ)

California (CA)

Colorado (CO)

Connecticut (CT)

District of Columbia (DC)

Delaware (DE)

Florida (FL)

Georgia (GA)

Hawaii (HI)

Iowa (IA)

Idaho (ID)

Illinois (IL)

Indiana (IN)

Kansas (KS)

Kentucky (KY)

Louisiana (LA)

Massachusetts (MA)

Maryland (MD)

Maine (ME)

Michigan (MI)

Minnesota (MN)

Missouri (MO)

Mississippi (MS)

Montana (MT)

North Carolina (NC)

North Dakota (ND)

Nebraska (NE)

New Hampshire (NH)

New Jersey (NJ)

New Mexico (NM)

Nevada (NV)

New York (NY)

Ohio (OH)

Oklahoma (OK)

Oregon (OR)

Pennsylvania (PA)

Rhode Island (RI)

South Carolina (SC)

South Dakota (SD)

Tennessee (TN)

Texas (TX)

Utah (UT)

Virginia (VA)

Vermont (VT)

Washington (WA)

Wisconsin (WI)

West Virginia (WV)

Wyoming (WY)

Data via SSA.gov.

Names Like Alexander

If you like Alexander, you’ll love these other names like Alexander.

What names are diminutives of Alexander?

A diminutive is a name that’s like Alexander sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Alexander, but shorter.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Al
Alec	Form of Alexander	Scottish
Aleco	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alejo	Man's defender, warrior; defender, protector	Spanish
Alek	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Aleko	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Aleksei	Defender, protector	Greek
Alex	Defender of man	Greek
Alexan	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alexei	Man's defender, warrior; defender, protector	Greek
Alexey	Defender, protector	Greek
Alexi	Man's defender, warrior; defender, protector	Greek
Alexio	Man's defender, warrior; defender, protector	Greek
Alexy	Defender, protector	Greek

Alic	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alicio	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alick	Man's defender, warrior	Scottish
Alik	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alix	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Allie	Precious; noble, bright, famous; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Lex	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Lexo	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Sacha		Russian
Sander	One who sands	English
Sandie	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Sandor	A short form of Alexander.	Hungarian
Sandro	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Sandros	Man's defender, warrior; son of Alexander	Hungarian
Sandy	A diminutive form of Alexander.	Scottish

Sascha	Man's defender, warrior	Russian
Sasha	Man's defender, warrior	Russian
Xander	Defender of man	Greek
Zander	Defender of man	Greek
Zandro	Man's defender, warrior	Slavic
Zandros	Man's defender, warrior	Slavic

What names are variants of Alexander?

Mix it up with these names that are a variation of the name Alexander.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Alasdair	Man's defender	Greek
Alastair	Man's defender	Greek
Alaster	Man's defender; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alaxander	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alcander	Strong	Greek
Alcinder	Strong; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alcindor	Strong; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alejandro	Defender of man	Spanish
Aleksandar	Man's defender, warrior	Greek

Aleksander	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Aleksandr	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Aleksanteri	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alesandro	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alessandre	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alessandri	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alessandro	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alexandre	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alexandro	Man's defender, warrior	Spanish
Alexandros	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alexios	Defender, protector	Greek
Alexis	Defender	Greek
Alexius	Defender, protector	Greek
Alexus	Defender, protector	Greek
Alisander	Man's defender, warrior	Greek

Alissander	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alissandre	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alistair	Man's defender	Greek
Alister	Man's defender; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alistir	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alixandre	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Allistair	Man's defender; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Allister	Man's defender; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Allistir	Man's defender; man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alsandare	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Alyksandr	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Iskander		Arabic
Iskender	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Sandero	Man's defender, warrior	Greek
Saunder	Man's defender, warrior	Greek

Saunders	Man's defender, warrior; son of Alexander	Greek
Sikander	Man's defender, warrior	Greek

What names sound like Alexander?

If you like how Alexander sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Alexander.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Alaric	Noble, regal ruler	German
Albert	Noble, bright, famous	German
Albin	White, pale-skinned	English
Aldan	Old friend	English
Alden	Old friend	English
Aldon	Old one, elder; old town	Italian
Aleron	Winged one	Latin
Alexavier	Created Name	American
Alfie	Elf or magical counsel; ready for battle	German
Alfonso	The Spanish or Italian form of Alphonso.	Spanish
Alfred	Elf or magical counsel	English
Alvin	Elf or magical being, friend	English

What names are similar to Alexander?

Find a name that’s like Alexander, but just a little bit different.

Name	Meaning	Origin	Popularity	Other Gender
Andrew	Manly and powerful	Greek

Anthony	Unknown meaning	Latin
Henry	Home ruler	English
Lucas	From Lucania	Latin
Maximilian	Greatest	Latin
Michael	Who is Like God?	Hebrew
Nathaniel	God has given	Hebrew
Sebastian	Venerable or honorable	Greek
Theodore	God's gift	Greek
William	A willing protector	German

Lists With Alexander

Find inspiration in these baby boy name lists featuring the name Alexander.

Siblings of Alexander

Mamas with kids named Alexander also have kids with these names.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Randi	Beautiful	Latin
Nathan	He gave	Hebrew
Charlotte	Free man	French
Violet	Violet flower	English
Abbigail	Father of exaltation	Hebrew
Arabella	Answered prayer	Latin

Anastasia	Resurrection	Greek
Arya	Faithful friend	Persian
Arthur	Bear	Celtic
Jordan	To descend	Hebrew
Makayla	Who is like God?	American
Brittany	From Brittany or Great Britain	Latin
Giovanni	God is gracious	Italian

Share Your Thoughts

32 Comments

Krystal Mar 29 at 11:43 am

His dad says it’s a good strong name

Reply
Alexander Jan 15 at 9:05 am

Alexander means soldier/warrior of God. We chose this name because it represents strength and courage, and we wanted him to have a good solid name that would reflect his character.

Reply
Everlyn+ombae Dec 2 at 10:28 am

I named my baby after his dad

Reply
Alexander Jun 1 at 1:19 pm

I really like the name it’s a very strong

Reply
Daniel May 9 at 1:05 am

powerful historic name, which goes well in many languages

Reply
Julia Valentine Sep 30 at 6:05 am

Gabriel Alexander will be the name for my second son. I searched every name in the book and after countless days name hunting, just weeks away from my due date I chose Alexander as his middle name because he can defend people with the strength of God. I have a son named Ranger Oliver and it was difficult to find another cute name like my first boy but Alex is simple yet elegant while being a strong boy name although it is also a nice girls name but for me I think its more of a boys name.

Reply
Heather Aug 6 at 10:14 am

It is dad’s middle name!

Reply
Alice Jul 14 at 6:31 pm

Thought Alex was a great nickname! His sister is June! June & Alex are my 2 favourite kids!

Reply
Melissa May 23 at 7:42 am

Two reasons really: it connected both my Jewish heritage and husband’s Greek heritage. Jewish names are picked after the last person who died and uses the first initial of their name so my boys named after my mother Amy. It’s also very cute to use the nickname as Alex.

Reply
Marianne Oct 14 at 6:57 am

His dad and I both loved the name after his dad suggested it. I wasn’t immediately sold but grew to like it in comparison with other names. Alex’s dad also has a friend with the same name, a very responsible and upright man; this was a deciding factor. We think it’s a strong and powerful name with a good meaning too.
Alexander has been lovely so far and funny, what with all the seven in a row farts and lovely laughs and smiles. He hardly cries, eats really well and very brave. I wouldn’t change him for the world?X

Reply
Melissa Oct 10 at 10:10 am

He was name after his grandpa N great grandfathers

Reply
Alyssa Aug 7 at 11:20 am

I chose the name Alexander be Use no other name suited after my husband asked me what I thought of it. The name is strong and beautiful.

Reply
Tianna May 23 at 1:09 pm

Strong name.

Reply
Kate Feb 22 at 8:27 pm

We chose family names with strong meanings. Alexander means protector or defender which I love.

Reply
Hannah Jan 31 at 8:40 am

Strong name for a strong pregnancy and baby boy.

Reply
Katelyn Nov 26 at 12:40 am

We needed something that had more than one syllable as our last name is just one syllable and single-syllable names don’t sound right. Both dad and I liked Alexander as it’s a strong name with lots of history and it hadn’t been tainted by other Alex’s we know. We also like how many variations and nicknames there are to choose from – Al, Alex, Lex, Lexi, Xander, Xandy.

Reply
Von Sep 22 at 1:05 am

He’s 14 ?

Reply
Yanin Sep 20 at 9:49 am

My husband and I were cleaning the kitchen when I asked that we should really start thinking about names. This was about April, 4th months into the pregnancy. I also did not know the gender as he was going to give me a gender reveal in May.

He says, “we’ll if it’s a boy I’ve always wanted to call him Alexander, if it’s a girl…”

I had loudly exclaimed “WHAAAT!?”
BECAUSE!
A few nights before, I had a dream where there was maybe a 4 year old running around me, and I called out to him “Alexander, come here!” And this faceless boy comes running into my breasts and gives me the biggest hug, and I hug him back and call him “mi boboncito” (my little bon bon).

I told him about the dream and he gives me a lifted brow and a “well then” look!
Alexander it is! His name was meant to be!

Reply
Stephanie Sep 12 at 12:41 pm

After a long, worrisome and stressful pregnancy with a large diagnosis we were back and for on two strong and powerful names. We chose Alexander for Alexander the Great!

Reply
Ashley Sep 7 at 11:26 am

I like more old fashioned names. Alexander is a strong and powerful name.

Reply
Ashley Sep 3 at 1:34 pm

I like that it is a powerful old time name.

Reply
Kami Aug 20 at 2:13 pm

My husband loves greek history. His name is Andrew which contains “ander” root. So, Alex-ander, a prominent greek name, and a lovely sounding one.

I dislike how common it is, but its harder for boys to have super uncommon names sometimes. I like everything else about it. Alex suits him.

Reply
Lucky momma Aug 17 at 12:47 pm

I liked Alexander because I thought it would suit his personality no matter what. We could call him Alex, Xander, Alexander, AJ. Every once in a while I wish I had named him Oliver. That’s what my heart told me, but my mother told me she hated that name so much that she would refuse to call him by his name. She was serious. I shouldn’t have cared. Go with your heart ?

Reply
Katiria Aug 16 at 10:09 am

I chose the name Alexander because it sounds powerful. He is my miracle baby!

Reply
Kimberly Jul 26 at 10:42 am

I thought it was a Regal name and perfect for one of my little Princes.

Reply
Bernice Jul 22 at 9:22 am

Daddy picked Alexander because it was a strong firm name for a baby boy.

Reply
Amber Jun 9 at 6:38 pm

We chose this name because it means helper and defender of man. His dad was going through cancer treatments at the time and Alex helped bring happiness.

Reply
Jasmine Jun 7 at 12:11 pm

He is a jr. Named after his father alexander rashi’ valentine jr.

Reply
Vanessa Bowman Apr 14 at 1:21 am

We chose Alexander because of our studies in Greek history from college and the fact that it’s such a strong sounding name with the meaning of Defender of Men. The classic origin fits well with the rest of our children’s names as well.

Reply
Kathy Apr 13 at 2:43 pm

My daughters and husband picked his name

Reply
Alicia Apr 11 at 4:24 pm

It means “protector of men” and fit with his older sister’s name which means “Shield”

Reply
Sarah Apr 11 at 12:26 pm

A strong and classic name.

Reply

Alexander