Meaning & origin
What it means
One Hebrew interpretation is “tree.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
Ilana is used as a feminine counterpart of Ilan.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1946. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Ilana through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 5,678
- 0 boys · 5,678 girls
- Most popular year
- 1992
- 135 babies
- 2025
- 71
- #2,496 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −1%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 71 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 2,496 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 1.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 135 in 1992. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (12). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,890 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Ilana’s family of names
Ilana is a feminine form of Ilan. In English usage, Ilana has a related form in Alana. Ilana has a masculine form in Ilan.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 7
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Ilana
- Ilana KlossSouth African tennis playerborn 1956
- Ilana GlazerAmerican comedianborn 1987
- Ilana KratyshIsraeli freestyle wrestlerborn 1990
- Ilana CicurelFrench lawyer and politicianborn 1972
- Ilana SodMexican journalistborn 1973
- Ilana RovinaIsraeli singer1934–2020
- Ilana CohenIsraeli politician1943–2026
- Ilana EliyaIsraeli singerborn 1955
- Ilana BergerIsraeli tennis playerborn 1965
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Ilana, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Elana
“from the oak tree”
>99% girls
Dalia
“dahlia” · “one who is gentle”
>99% girls
Allona
“one who is as strong as an oak” · “of the oak tree”
>99% girls
Dara
“a wise woman” · “from the oak tree”
14% boys · 86% girls
Orinthia
“of the pine tree” · “a fair lady”
3% boys · 97% girls
Blimah
“one resembling a blossom”
>99% girls
Hedasaa
“resembling a star”
>99% girls
Yesenia
“resembling a flower”
>99% girls