Fun Facts About the Name Elspeth
- 918 babies named Elspeth: U.S. records list 918 babies given the name Elspeth from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Elspeth Mean?
Elspeth is a Scottish feminine name, a Scots form of Elizabeth, and it carries the same meaning. Elizabeth comes from the Hebrew name Elisheva (אֱלִישֶׁבַע), formed from El, meaning "God," and sheva, most often understood as "oath." Read literally, the name means "my God is an oath," a phrase customarily translated as "God is my oath" or "God is my promise." A less common reading takes sheva as "seven," giving "my God is abundance," but "oath" is the sense generally accepted. Because Elspeth is a form of Elizabeth rather than an independent coinage, its meaning is the meaning of that Hebrew original, not a separate Scots etymology.
Elspeth Name History & Origins
Elspeth is one of the many vernacular shapes Elizabeth took as the name spread through medieval Europe. In Scotland it appears as Elspeth, next to the closely related spellings Elspet and the diminutive Elspie. The Scots form is marked by an "s" sound where the English Elizabeth has a "z," and by the loss of a syllable in the middle of the name - features of how Scots speakers reshaped the imported name. Elspeth was in use in Scotland by the later Middle Ages and stayed a familiar Scottish name, distinct from the English Elizabeth that was also known there.
Scotland's literary tradition picked the name up. Sir Walter Scott used it for Elspeth Mucklebackit in The Antiquary (1816), and the name recurs in Scottish writing from the nineteenth century onward. Such authorship is a literary association, not the origin of the name; Elspeth was already current in Scotland before it appeared in fiction. The short form Elsie, common in both Scotland and England, is related to this same family of Elizabeth forms.
How Popular is the Name Elspeth?
Elspeth has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1984. Its best rank was #2,437 in 1984.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #7,600 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 2024 | #6,215 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 2023 | #8,614 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2022 | #6,800 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2021 | #6,777 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2020 | #5,205 | 24 | 0.0015% |
| 2019 | #6,795 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2018 | #6,605 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2017 | #5,897 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2016 | #6,495 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 2015 | #8,601 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2014 | #5,672 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2013 | #8,266 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2012 | #8,336 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2011 | #10,618 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2010 | #8,015 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2009 | #10,918 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2008 | #8,240 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2007 | #11,077 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2006 | #7,596 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 2005 | #6,354 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2004 | #10,961 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2003 | #6,979 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2002 | #8,443 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2001 | #8,351 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2000 | #13,681 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #9,740 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1998 | #8,167 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #9,260 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1996 | #14,176 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1995 | #8,989 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1994 | #9,052 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1993 | #7,657 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1992 | #6,103 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1991 | #6,345 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1990 | #6,584 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1989 | #5,112 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1988 | #3,419 | 28 | 0.0016% |
| 1987 | #3,653 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 1986 | #2,796 | 34 | 0.0020% |
| 1985 | #3,268 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 1984 | #2,437 | 39 | 0.0023% |
| 1983 | #3,174 | 26 | 0.0016% |
| 1982 | #2,717 | 34 | 0.0020% |
| 1981 | #5,996 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1979 | #10,653 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1977 | #6,005 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1974 | #6,409 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1972 | #8,640 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1971 | #6,176 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1969 | #7,802 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1968 | #5,276 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1962 | #6,858 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1961 | #5,007 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #5,755 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1957 | #6,344 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1955 | #4,866 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1951 | #3,788 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1950 | #4,904 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1947 | #3,525 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1944 | #4,200 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1942 | #4,261 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1940 | #4,538 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1936 | #3,828 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1934 | #4,462 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1932 | #3,677 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1929 | #3,785 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1925 | #4,141 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1921 | #5,346 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1920 | #4,551 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1917 | #4,244 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1916 | #4,629 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1914 | #3,788 | 5 | 0.0007% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Elspeth Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are fine when in harmony but changeable when in discord, because many of your best qualities are then reversed. You are entertaining but may be impulsive. Freedom is a necessity, and you find it difficult to settle down. Your versatility results in many changes, and often brings travel. Your fine intellect is capable of high honors if applied seriously. You are capable of inspired thinking applied to material things. You can be restless, changeable, and very sexy. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
Dependable, very down-to-earth and well grounded, you are always looking for meaningful work, a career where you can take pride in your work and do the best job you are capable of. Your prime desire is to build protected and secure environment at home and at work. You can be very persuasive in achieving goals and gaining objectives. You can be very detailed and well-organized and possess great organizational skills. At times you may appear too stubborn and overly critical to others, but your practical approach to life and productivity makes you one of the most beneficent members of community.
✦ Elspeth's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Elspeth's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.