# Alec (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/alec/  
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 | Greek |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈælɪk/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Aleck, Alek |
| US babies named this | 55,489 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 55,152 / 337 (1% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 2,098, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Clipping 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, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 27 | 3,894 |
| 1995 | 37 | 3,090 |
| 1996 | 24 | 4,311 |
| 1997 | 14 | 6,496 |
| 1998 | 23 | 4,639 |
| 1999 | 13 | 7,254 |
| 2000 | 9 | 9,912 |
| 2001 | 11 | 8,779 |
| 2002 | 6 | 13,661 |
| 2003 | 10 | 9,703 |
| 2004 | 5 | 16,208 |
| 2005 | 7 | 13,073 |
| 2008 | 6 | 15,478 |
| 2010 | 5 | 17,130 |
| 2016 | 6 | 14,426 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 659 | 421 |
| 2012 | 606 | 449 |
| 2013 | 626 | 453 |
| 2014 | 624 | 467 |
| 2015 | 665 | 456 |
| 2016 | 617 | 492 |
| 2017 | 575 | 506 |
| 2018 | 521 | 539 |
| 2019 | 518 | 543 |
| 2020 | 470 | 588 |
| 2021 | 390 | 682 |
| 2022 | 346 | 745 |
| 2023 | 290 | 841 |
| 2024 | 274 | 880 |
| 2025 | 234 | 977 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 60 | 580 |
| 2012 | 52 | 654 |
| 2013 | 56 | 611 |
| 2014 | 54 | 632 |
| 2015 | 47 | 702 |
| 2016 | 65 | 571 |
| 2017 | 57 | 628 |
| 2018 | 48 | 711 |
| 2019 | 68 | 552 |
| 2020 | 47 | 706 |
| 2021 | 55 | 659 |
| 2022 | 54 | 646 |
| 2023 | 45 | 738 |
| 2024 | 33 | 945 |
| 2025 | 30 | 1,007 |

## In other languages

- Bulgarian: Алек
- Chinese: 亞歷克 /亚历克
- French: Alec
- Japanese: アレック
- Polish: Olek
- Russian: А́лек
- Scottish Gaelic: Ailig

## People named Alec

- Alec Guinness, British actor (1914–2000)
- Alec Benjamin, American singer-songwriter
- Alec Jeffreys, British geneticist
- Alec John Such, American bassist (1951–2022)
- Alec Issigonis, British car designer (1906–1988)
- Alec Burks, American basketball player (born 1991)
- Alec Potts, Australian archer
- Alec McCowen, British actor (1925–2017)
- Alec B. Francis, British actor (1867-1934)
- Alec Martinez, American ice hockey player
- Alec Utgoff, British actor
- Alec Georgen, French association football player

## 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.