Given name & surname · also Latin
Alexander
“helper and defender of mankind”
Alexander is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “helper and defender of mankind.”
Original Ancient GreekἈλέξανδρος
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “helper and defender of mankind.”
Where it comes from
This spelling has been associated with Latin and Greek naming traditions.
How it developed
Alexander developed from a Latin form of Greek Alexandros. The earlier name combines alexein (“to defend”) and anēr (“man, warrior”).
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Alexander appears in Mark 15:21, Acts 19:23-41, 1 Timothy 1:20 and 2 other passages.
- Mark 15:21
- Acts 19:23-41
- 1 Timothy 1:20
- 2 Timothy 4:14
- 1 Timothy 1:3
From biblical name research
Alexander through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 740,668
- 736,123 boys · 4,545 girls
- Most popular year
- 1993
- 20,708 babies
- 2025
- 7,244
- #30 for boys · #7,502 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −32%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7,230 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 30 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 31.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 20,530 in 1993. It also appeared in 14 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (1,169). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 556,757 as a first name in 2020; 197,734 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Alexander’s family of names
In English usage, Alexander has a diminutive in Alex. In Norwegian Bokmål usage, Alexander has a feminine form in Alexandra. In English usage, Alexander has a conventional equivalent in the Spanish form Alejandro.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Alexander has relatives in 81 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
Ancient Greekwhere Alexander comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 87
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Elsiediminutive · English
- Alexclipped form · Norwegian Bokmål, English
- Xanderdiminutive · English, German
- Alexisvariant · German
- Zanderdiminutive · English, German
- Alessandrovariant · Portuguese, Italian
- Alliediminutive · English
- Sashadiminutive · English
Show 52 moreShow fewer
- Alecclipped form · English, Welsh
- Alexavariant · German
- Aleksandervariant · Norwegian, Norwegian Bokmål
- Allydiminutive · English
- Sandydiminutive · English
- Alexzandervariant · English
- Alexandrevariant · Portuguese, French
- Lexdiminutive · English, German
- Alekdiminutive · English
- Alexandrosvariant · English
- Alexandrovariant
- Sandroshort form · Spanish
- Sandershort form · Norwegian Bokmål, Dutch
- Aleksandrvariant · Breton
- Alexivariant · German
- Lexavariant · German
- Aleksandarvariant
- Sanyapet form
- Sandersshort form · English, German
- Aldiminutive · English
- Senderpet form · English
- Alexandruvariant · Romanian, Asturian
- Alesandrovariant
- Aleksvariant · German
- Aleksivariant · German
- Alexxanderlikely variant
- Iskandervariant · English, Indonesian
- Sikandarvariant · English
- Sandidiminutive · English
- Sandersonshort form · English
- Allexanderlikely variant
- Iskandarvariant · English, Indonesian
- Sandiediminutive · English
- Xandiminutive · English
- Sannediminutive · Dutch
- Aleckdiminutive · English, Scots
- Saundersshort form · German
- Alesshort form · Finnish
- Alexanvariant
- Alessandrevariant
- Alaxandervariant · sga
- Lexiusvariant · German
- Alexyvariant · German
- Alexiusvariant · German
- Aleksavariant · German
- Olexapet form
- Olekpet form
- Alickshort form
- Scandarvariant · English
- ʻAlikashort form · Hawaiian
- Alesantvariant · Swedish
- Askandervariant · English
And 27 more.
Spellings & scripts 4
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 96
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Ἀλέξανδροςroot · Ancient Greek
- ΑλέξανδροςGreek
- AlexandrusLatin
- Alejandrocognate · Spanish, English
- Alexandrafeminine form · Slovene, Swedish
- Alistairderivative · English, Manx
- Alisterderivative · Manx, Scottish Gaelic
- Alastairdoublet · English, Scottish Gaelic
Show 52 moreShow fewer
- Alasdairderivative · Scottish Gaelic
- Sacharelated form
- Oleksandrequivalent
- Alexandrderivative · Czech
- Alexsanderequivalent
- Elekrelated form
- Alastarborrowing · Irish
- Alecsanderborrowing · Welsh
- Aleksandrscognate · Latvian
- AleksyPolish
- Skenderkmr
- AlesanderBasque
- Àlexequivalent
- Olexandrequivalent
- Lissanderequivalent
- Alexandresequivalent
- Александерequivalent
- اسكندرequivalent
- ܐܠܟܣܢܕܪܘܣequivalent
- अलेक्संदरequivalent
- Алеѯандръequivalent
- ചാണ്ടിequivalent
- Zanzandeequivalent
- Олеѯандреequivalent
- સિકંદરequivalent
- Alegzandeequivalent
- ألكسندروسequivalent
- Аляксандарequivalent
- Ackequivalent
- Alesànderequivalent
- Skënderequivalent
- Aleksandërequivalent
- Alexandersen“son of” surname · Danish
- Александрcognate · Russian
- అలెగ్జాండర్borrowing · Telugu
- আলেকজান্ডারborrowing · Bengali
- 알렉산더borrowing · Korean
- Аляксандрcognate · Belarusian
- アレクサンダーJapanese
- อเล็กซานเดอร์Thai
- ალექსანდრეGeorgian
- ԱլեքսանդրArmenian
- АлександарSerbian, Serbo-Croatian
- Aleksandurborrowing · Faroese
- Lissandridescendant · Friulian
- Ollisterderivative · Manx
- Sandaidhrelated form
- Olexeirelated form
- Lisàndarequivalent
- Aliaksandrequivalent
- सिकंदरHindi
- אלכסנדרHebrew
And 36 more.
See also 4
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Alexander
- Alexander the Greatking of Macedonia and conqueror of Achaemenid Persia (356–323 BC)355 BC–322 BC
- Alexander PushkinRussian poet, playwright, and novelist (1799–1837)
- Alexander Graham BellCanadian-American scientist inventor of telephone (1847–1922)
- Boris JohnsonPrime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2019 to 2022born 1964
- Alexander FlemingScottish biologist, pharmacologist, botanist, and Nobel laureate (1881–1955)
- Alexander PopeEnglish poet (1688–1744)
- Alex FergusonScottish association football manager and former player (born 1941)
- Alexander I of RussiaThe tenth Emperor of Russia (1777–1825)
- Alexander II of RussiaThe 12th Emperor of Russia (1855–1881)1818–1881
Characters named Alexander: Alexander Mahone (Prison Break), RoboCop (fictional cybernetically enhanced police officer), Xander Harris (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Lex Luthor (DC Extended Universe character).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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