The first name Elinor

In 2025, 27 girls were named Elinor, making it the 1,197th most popular girls’ name. It peaked in 1996, with 136 births (#273).

Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Elinor with other names.

In 2025, 142 girls born in the United States were named Elinor, the 1,502nd most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 1920, when 656 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.

• Elinor Ostrom
  American political economist (1933-2012)
• Elinor Glyn
  British novelist and scriptwriter (1864-1943)
• Elinor Donahue
  Actress, born 1937
• Elinor Wylie
  American poet (1885-1928)
• Elinor Fair
  American actress (1903–1957)
• Elinor Byrns
  American lawyer, pacifist, feminist, 1876–1957
• Elinor Remick Warren
  American composer (1900-1991)
• Elinor Ross
  American singer (1926-2020)
• Elinor Field
  American actress (1902-1998)
• Elinor Smith
  American aviator (1911-2010)
• Elinor Burkett
  American journalist, born 1946
• Elle Purrier St. Pierre
  American middle- and long-distance runner, born 1995

How popular is the name Elinor?

In 2025, 27 girls born in England and Wales were named Elinor, ranking 1,197th. Its peak was 1996, with 136 births.

Is Elinor a boy's or a girl's name?

Mostly a girl's name: 100% of the 21,640 US babies named Elinor since 1880 were girls.

When was Elinor most popular?

1920 in the United States, when 656 babies were named Elinor, its highest rank at 257th.

What name is Elinor a form of?

Elinor is a form of Eleanor.