The first name Else
A girl’s name.
1 syllable Female Also a surname
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
Else last appeared in the official list in 2022, given to 3 girls. It peaked in 2008, with 3 births (#5,545).
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Else with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Else at birth, 1880–2025
In 2020, 5 girls born in the United States were named Else, the 15,807th most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 1932, when 14 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.
Famous people named Else
21 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Else AlfeltDanish artist (1910-1974)
- Else UryGerman Jewish novelist (1877–1943)
- Else JacobsenDanish swimmer (1911–1965)
- Else BergDutch painter (1877-1942)
- Else Marie FriisDanish botanist and paleontologist, born 1947
- Else Holmelund MinarikAmerican writer (1920–2012)
- Else FeldmannAustrian writer (1884–1942)
- Else PetersenDanish actress, 1910–2002
- Else RoesdahlDanish medievalist, archaeologist, author and educator, born 1942
- Else HammerichDanish politician (1936-2021)
- Else ElsterGerman actress (1910-1998)
- Else JarlbakActress, 1911–1963
Questions
- How popular is the name Else?
- In 2022, 3 girls born in England and Wales were named Else, ranking 5,669th. Its peak was 2008, with 3 births.
- Is Else a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a girl's name: 100% of the 514 US babies named Else since 1880 were girls.
- When was Else most popular?
- 1932 in the United States, when 14 babies were named Else, its highest rank at 2,277th.
- Is Else also a surname?
- Yes. Else is used as a surname as well as a first name; its surname page has the origin and how many people carry it.