Elena Name Meaning

With a meaning like “shining light,” it’s no surprise that parents are loving Elena. A variant of Helen, Elena hails from Greek roots. She’s a beautiful pick with depth and history, worn by actresses, opera singers, and more.

A mature pick with a girlish side, Elena easily overcomes the aging obstacle. She avoids the cutesy vibes seen with some names as well as the matronly feel of others. She’s mature enough for the boardroom yet light enough for a little one playing dolls. She also comes with a few nicknames to wear throughout life like Elle, Ellie, and Lena.

Elena is very much a sweet spot name, remaining a familiar face that’s not too popular. She’s easy to say and pronounce, a simple choice for parents looking for something common but not overused. Some other names in this category include Vanessa and Cara.

Elena offers a flexibility that’s rare in names, blending in various backgrounds with ease. She isn’t restricted in any way, fitting in a variety of styles. She can easily be seen as classic or modern, especially if the nickname Lanie is used. Elena is also a great way to honor an Elaine or Elizabeth in your life.

As E names for girls continue to dot the charts, Elena is in great company. She’s also part of the El- name trend seen with Eliana and Ella.

Infographic of Elena name meaning, which is A Greek form of Helen, Elena means shining light.
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Elena Name Popularity

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

Year Rank # Births % Births
1910 498 31 0.0088%
1911 402 60 0.0161%
1912 513 50 0.0099%
1913 472 72 0.0127%
1914 472 93 0.0133%
1915 494 117 0.0129%
1916 498 126 0.013%
1917 511 125 0.0125%
1918 469 158 0.0147%
1919 526 129 0.0123%
1920 527 136 0.0122%
1921 467 174 0.0152%
1922 479 162 0.0145%
1923 474 169 0.0151%
1924 478 168 0.0145%
1925 460 178 0.0157%
1926 442 187 0.017%
1927 454 188 0.017%
1928 423 209 0.0195%
1929 471 158 0.0153%
1930 451 169 0.0162%
1931 472 144 0.0146%
1932 455 159 0.0161%
1933 482 130 0.014%
1934 479 135 0.014%
1935 529 104 0.0107%
1936 497 124 0.0129%
1937 536 108 0.011%
1938 524 123 0.012%
1939 580 88 0.0087%
1940 590 95 0.0089%
1941 485 157 0.0139%
1942 519 157 0.0124%
1943 492 179 0.0137%
1944 477 180 0.0145%
1945 490 169 0.0139%
1946 503 199 0.0135%
1947 541 197 0.0118%
1948 480 236 0.0148%
1949 510 205 0.0127%
1950 508 216 0.0134%
1951 507 216 0.0127%
1952 520 220 0.0126%
1953 496 258 0.0146%
1954 488 290 0.0159%
1955 451 354 0.0192%
1956 502 304 0.0161%
1957 466 369 0.0192%
1958 457 393 0.0208%
1959 488 351 0.0185%
1960 474 387 0.0204%
1961 501 336 0.0178%
1962 472 374 0.0204%
1963 439 434 0.0242%
1964 440 446 0.0253%
1965 447 409 0.025%
1966 410 470 0.0301%
1967 416 460 0.0303%
1968 441 424 0.0282%
1969 422 479 0.0311%
1970 445 453 0.0285%
1971 421 456 0.0303%
1972 405 441 0.0324%
1973 448 376 0.029%
1974 385 498 0.0383%
1975 402 463 0.036%
1976 399 471 0.0365%
1977 391 491 0.0364%
1978 373 529 0.0393%
1979 365 581 0.0412%
1980 368 596 0.0408%
1981 375 587 0.0399%
1982 376 570 0.0381%
1983 395 517 0.035%
1984 403 486 0.0327%
1985 325 700 0.0461%
1986 368 601 0.0398%
1987 390 558 0.0366%
1988 403 554 0.0356%
1989 353 689 0.0427%
1990 359 706 0.0426%
1991 354 695 0.0426%
1992 336 763 0.0478%
1993 324 782 0.0502%
1994 299 882 0.0575%
1995 296 908 0.0602%
1996 304 902 0.0602%
1997 296 942 0.0637%
1998 278 1,097 0.0733%
1999 211 1,452 0.097%
2000 236 1,336 0.0875%
2001 228 1,373 0.0911%
2002 234 1,327 0.0886%
2003 222 1,443 0.0949%
2004 215 1,563 0.1025%
2005 217 1,587 0.1038%
2006 187 1,852 0.1183%
2007 193 1,725 0.1093%
2008 209 1,607 0.104%
2009 196 1,653 0.1106%
2010 163 1,867 0.1296%
2011 160 1,922 0.1349%
2012 139 2,249 0.1578%
2013 132 2,385 0.1675%
2014 121 2,603 0.1787%
2015 106 2,882 0.1981%
2016 94 3,172 0.22%
2017 68 3,857 0.2763%
2018 66 3,748 0.2728%
2019 60 3,911 0.2889%
2020 55 3,844 0.302%
2021 52 4,014 0.3284%
2022 49 4,266 0.3234%

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Data via SSA.gov.

Names Like Elena

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

What names are diminutives of Elena?

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

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
El

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Ella

Other goddess

Hebrew

Elle

She

French

Ellie

Shortened form of El- names

English

Laney

Path, roadway

English

Lena

Woman from Magdala

Hebrew

What names are variants of Elena?

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

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Alena

Tower

Russian

Elaina

Shining light

Greek

Elaine

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Elana

Tree

Hebrew

Eleana

God has answered; tree

Hebrew

Eleena

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Elen

Light

Greek

Elene

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Eleni

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Elina

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Ellena

Man's defender; sun ray, shining light

Greek

Elona

Oak tree; light

Hungarian

Ilena

English

What names sound like Elena?

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

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Aleah

Rising, ascending

Hebrew

Elizabeth

God is my oath

Hebrew

Elodie

Marsh flower

Greek

Elora

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

Elspeth

An exotic variant of Elizabeth.

Scottish

Helena

Sun ray, shining light

Greek

What names are similar to Elena?

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

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Alexa

Defender of man

Greek

Alexandra

Defender of man

Greek

Diana

Heavenly and divine

Latin

Gemma

Precious stone

Italian

Juniper

Juniper tree

English

Lucille

Of the light

French

Luna

The moon

Latin

Nora

Honorable one

Latin

Penelope

Weaver

Greek

Sophia

Wisdom

Greek

Lists With Elena

Find inspiration in these baby girl name lists featuring the name Elena.

Siblings of Elena

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

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Robert

Bright fame

German

Nikola
Elisa

God's promise

Hebrew

Esperanza

Hope

Spanish

19 Comments

  1. Elena is the best name ever!

    Reply

  2. Grandma’s name and love the sound and meaning (light ?)

    Reply

  3. My name is Elena too and I think its beautiful!! Go Elena’s

    Reply

  4. Elena is a European version of Helen which I prefer the sound of. It evokes light and is a soft and feminine classic name. But we also use Alyona as a nickname!

    Reply

  5. She is named after my grandma Elaine. We call her Ellie.

    Reply

  6. Our first born was named Esperanza and so my husband wanted to continue the easy and I wanted to continue it being on the Spanish side. Our first daughter’s name met hope and we wanted another spiritual application type name and Elena means joy and mercy.

    Reply

  7. I absolutely love my name! Matches my personality!

    Reply

    • Hello my name is Elena and I love my name too it is perfect and in my family I am the only one with the initials initials EME! (: ?

      Reply

  8. It’s always been my favourite name! I love how it sounds

    Reply

  9. Elena June Vee. Named after all of her grandmothers. Elena is my grandmas name in Spanish. She was born on her birthday, and they both weighed the same at birth. 11 lbs! They’ll have a joint birthday party this year as my grandma turns 90, and Elena turns 1! June is my mothers name. And Vee is short for her other grandma.

    Reply

  10. Easy to pronounce in English and Spanish.

    Reply

  11. Elena means bright light

    Reply

  12. It’s a beautiful name

    Reply

  13. My husband and I chose Elena because it means “shining light” or “bright one”. When we were trying to conceive, I prayed for a little beacon of light for our family and to add to this world so it seemed only fitting. Plus there are plenty of adorable nickname options!

    Reply

  14. I named Elena after my mom who passed away.

    Reply

    • My name is Elena since I’m From Croatia I’m really happy to have this name and btw,I’m 9 yrs old

      Reply

  15. It’s a spin off the name of my grandmother Elaine who was very special to me and I’ve always wanted to name my daughter after her in some way. I like that Elena is not real common and its also very simple and sweet. The Hebrew translation and meaning is shining light and is pronounced as eh-LEH-nah.

    Reply

  16. My great aunts name was Elaine and I wanted to name my daughter after her with a more modernized version. So I chose Elena to honor my great aunt and have a name that isn’t so common today.

    Reply

  17. We picked the name Elena Renee for my daughter because we loved the meaning of the name , shining light and Renee is my middle name. She lived up to this name on the day of her birth. After a long hard labor through night, she was my joy that came in the morning with the light as she was starting to be born! But we suffered complications and she went into distress and had to be delivered quickly and forcefully! She was able to be Resuscitated and saved, thus living up to her middle name Renee, born again! We call her Laney for short. She is a strong girl with a content and sweet personality!

    Reply

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