The first name Adelaide
A girl’s name from French meaning “noble”, “nature”, “character”.
Pronounced /ˈæ.də.leɪd/ 3 syllables Female
Meaning and origin
French origin
Adelaide means “noble”, “nature”, “character” in French.
Borrowed from French Adélaïde, from Old High German Adalheid (from adal (“noble”) + heit (“nature, character”)), modern German Adelheid; doublet of Alice.
More names that mean noble.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
In 2025, 126 girls were named Adelaide, making it the 342nd most popular girls’ name.
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Adelaide with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Adelaide at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 1,062 girls born in the United States were named Adelaide, the 289th most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 2016, when 1,240 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Adelaide in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Spelled Adelaide in Italian and Portuguese too.
Nicknames and spellings
Nicknames for Adelaide
- Addi
Famous people named Adelaide
60 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Adelaide of AquitaineFrench noble woman and queens consort, 950–1004
- Adélaïde Labille-GuiardFrench painter and miniaturist (1749–1803)
- Adelaide KaneAustralian actress (born 1990)
- Princess Mary Adelaide of CambridgeBritish Royal (1833–1897), mother of Mary of Teck
- Adelaide del VastoCountess of Sicily (1089–1101) and Queen of Jerusalem (1112–1117)
- Adelaide Anne ProcterEnglish poet and philanthropist (1825–1864)
- Adelaide ClemensAustralian actress, born 1989
- Marie Adélaïde of FranceFrench noblewoman (1732–1800)
- Princess Adélaïde of OrléansFrench royal (1777–1847)
- Adelaide HallAmerican-born jazz singer and actor (1901–1993)
- Marie Adelaide Belloc LowndesEnglish novelist (1868-1947)
- Adelaide LambertAmerican swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, former world record-holder (1907-1996)
More French girls’ names
Questions
- What does the name Adelaide mean?
- Adelaide means “noble”, “nature”, “character” in French.
- What is the origin of the name Adelaide?
- Borrowed from French Adélaïde, from Old High German Adalheid (from adal (“noble”) + heit (“nature, character”)), modern German Adelheid; doublet of Alice.
- How popular is the name Adelaide?
- In 2025, 126 girls born in England and Wales were named Adelaide, ranking 342nd.
- What are nicknames for Adelaide?
- Common nicknames for Adelaide include Addi.
- Is Adelaide a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a girl's name: 100% of the 35,007 US babies named Adelaide since 1880 were girls.
- When was Adelaide most popular?
- 2016 in the United States, when 1,240 babies were named Adelaide, its highest rank at 255th.
- How do you pronounce Adelaide?
- Adelaide is /ˈæ.də.leɪd/, 3 syllables.