Alexandra
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "defender of mankind".
Name Census estimates that about 235,358 living Americans carry the first name Alexandra. It sits at #221 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Alexandra today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Alexandra births was 1993 (10,719 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Alexandra. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Although Alexandra is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 869 boys registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
235K
~ 1 in 1,456 Americans
Peak year
1993
10,719 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2021 SSA rank
#221
Tracked since 1894
Gender
Gender distribution for Alexandra
Out of the 244,997 babies given the name Alexandra since 1880, 99.6% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Alexandra as a male name
- Ranked #12,219 in 2021
- 5 male births in 2021
- Peak: 1989 (99 births)
Alexandra as a female name
- Ranked #221 in 2024
- 1,387 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1993 (10,682 births)
Popularity
Alexandra: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Alexandra from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 95,097 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Alexandra by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Alexandra during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Alexandras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Alexandra, while Wyoming, Vermont, South Dakota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 4,737 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Alexandra
The name Alexandra has its origins in the Greek language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is a feminine form of the Greek name "Alexandros," which means "defender of men" or "protector of mankind." The name is derived from the Greek words "alexein," meaning "to defend," and "andros," meaning "man."
One of the earliest and most famous historical references to the name Alexandra is in ancient Greek mythology. Alexandra was the name of a character who was the daughter of Priam, the king of Troy during the Trojan War. She was also known as Cassandra, the prophetess who was gifted with the ability to see the future but was cursed with never being believed.
The name Alexandra gained widespread popularity during the Hellenistic period, which followed the reign of Alexander the Great (356-323 BC). Alexander the Great himself was known for his military conquests and the spread of Greek culture throughout the ancient world. As a result, the name Alexandra became associated with strength, courage, and leadership.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Alexandra is from the 4th century BC, when Alexandra was the name of a niece of the Greek general and statesman, Antipater. Another notable Alexandra from ancient times was Alexandra Salome, a Hasmonean princess who lived in the 1st century BC and ruled over parts of ancient Judea.
Throughout history, there have been several notable figures who bore the name Alexandra. One of the most famous was Alexandra Feodorovna (1872-1918), the last Tsarina of Russia and wife of Tsar Nicholas II. Another prominent Alexandra was Alexandra of Denmark (1844-1925), who became the Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions as the wife of King Edward VII.
In the field of literature, Alexandra Mikhailovna Kollontai (1872-1952) was a Russian revolutionary, writer, and diplomat who played a significant role in the Bolshevik Revolution and the early years of the Soviet Union. Alexandra David-Neel (1868-1969) was a French explorer, writer, and Buddhist scholar who became famous for her travels in Tibet and her writings on Tibetan culture.
Other notable Alexandras include Alexandra Zampetaki (1901-1982), a Greek actress and singer who was a prominent figure in the Greek cinema of the 20th century, and Alexandra Kosteniuk (born 1984), a Russian chess grandmaster who has won numerous international chess tournaments and championships.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Alexandra
People
Alexandra + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Alexandra as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Alexandra: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alexandra?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 235,358 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Alexandra going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,456 US residents.
Is Alexandra a common name?
We classify Alexandra as "Common". It ranks above 99.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 244,997 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Alexandra most popular?
The single biggest year for Alexandra was 1993, when 10,719 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Alexandra is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Alexandra a female name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Alexandra in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.