# Alastair (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/alastair/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | Scottish Gaelic |
| Meaning | “alexander” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈæl.ə.stɚ/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Aleister |
| US babies named this | 1,364 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 1,364 / 0 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 1,660, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Scottish Gaelic Alasdair (“Alexander”). Doublet of Alexander.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 27 | 3,795 |
| 2012 | 38 | 3,005 |
| 2013 | 28 | 3,665 |
| 2014 | 36 | 3,091 |
| 2015 | 47 | 2,600 |
| 2016 | 50 | 2,518 |
| 2017 | 61 | 2,187 |
| 2018 | 46 | 2,676 |
| 2019 | 62 | 2,231 |
| 2020 | 39 | 2,980 |
| 2021 | 61 | 2,277 |
| 2022 | 50 | 2,649 |
| 2023 | 60 | 2,315 |
| 2024 | 59 | 2,372 |
| 2025 | 67 | 2,147 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 41 | 759 |
| 2012 | 44 | 748 |
| 2013 | 45 | 720 |
| 2014 | 38 | 805 |
| 2015 | 34 | 888 |
| 2016 | 36 | 870 |
| 2017 | 44 | 771 |
| 2018 | 33 | 897 |
| 2019 | 40 | 787 |
| 2020 | 20 | 1,273 |
| 2021 | 35 | 871 |
| 2022 | 19 | 1,366 |
| 2023 | 14 | 1,701 |
| 2024 | 21 | 1,282 |
| 2025 | 25 | 1,153 |

## People named Alastair

- Alastair Reynolds, British science fiction author (born 1966)
- Alastair Cook, English cricketer (born 1984)
- Alastair McCorquodale, British athlete (1925-2009)
- Alastair Heathcote, British rower
- Alastair Gordon, Australian rower
- Alastair G. W. Cameron, Canadian astrophysicist (1925–2005)
- Alastair Fothergill, British producer
- Alastair Stout, British actor
- Alastair Denniston, British cryptographer and Royal Navy Commander (1881-1961)
- Alastair Bradley Martin, American tennis player and art collector (1915–2010)
- Alastair Mackenzie, British actor
- Alastair Bruce, 5th Baron Aberdare, British politician

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.