Fun Facts About the Name Elyssa
- More than 7 thousand babies named Elyssa: U.S. records list 7,272 babies given the name Elyssa from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Elyssa Mean?
Elyssa is most often a spelling variant of Alyssa, and through it of Alice. Those names trace back to the Germanic name Adalheidis, the ancestor of Adelaide, built from adal ("noble") and heit ("kind, sort, type"). The literal sense is "of noble kind." A second and separate source sometimes attached to this spelling is Elissa, the name classical tradition gives to Dido, the legendary queen of Carthage; that Phoenician name has no securely known meaning. The noble-kind meaning belongs to the Alice/Alyssa line, not to Elissa.
Elyssa Name History & Origins
The spelling Elyssa belongs to the modern family of respellings of Alyssa, whose use in English expanded during the 20th century. Alyssa was borrowed from Alicia, the Latin form of Alice; Alice came into English from Old French Aliz, and the French form descends from the Germanic Adalheidis. The y in Elyssa is a respelling that aligns the name visually with Elissa, the name used in classical sources for Dido of Carthage. Elissa has its own separate history as a given name drawn from the classical tradition rather than from the Alice line, and later writers have sometimes treated the two strands as connected. The choice of y reflects spelling variation rather than a different root.
How Popular is the Name Elyssa?
Elyssa recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2004. Its best rank was #800 in 1998.
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 | #5,014 | 26 | 0.0016% |
| 2024 | #3,229 | 49 | 0.0030% |
| 2023 | #3,787 | 40 | 0.0025% |
| 2022 | #2,967 | 56 | 0.0034% |
| 2021 | #2,792 | 61 | 0.0037% |
| 2020 | #2,223 | 81 | 0.0050% |
| 2019 | #2,542 | 69 | 0.0041% |
| 2018 | #2,917 | 57 | 0.0034% |
| 2017 | #2,024 | 97 | 0.0056% |
| 2016 | #1,820 | 114 | 0.0064% |
| 2015 | #1,923 | 105 | 0.0059% |
| 2014 | #1,538 | 142 | 0.0080% |
| 2013 | #1,606 | 134 | 0.0076% |
| 2012 | #1,343 | 175 | 0.0099% |
| 2011 | #1,326 | 176 | 0.0100% |
| 2010 | #1,270 | 188 | 0.0106% |
| 2009 | #1,212 | 206 | 0.0112% |
| 2008 | #1,289 | 193 | 0.0102% |
| 2007 | #1,065 | 246 | 0.0128% |
| 2006 | #1,034 | 248 | 0.0130% |
| 2005 | #992 | 246 | 0.0133% |
| 2004 | #891 | 273 | 0.0149% |
| 2003 | #921 | 257 | 0.0141% |
| 2002 | #889 | 253 | 0.0141% |
| 2001 | #921 | 244 | 0.0136% |
| 2000 | #876 | 252 | 0.0139% |
| 1999 | #875 | 246 | 0.0139% |
| 1998 | #800 | 265 | 0.0150% |
| 1997 | #844 | 244 | 0.0140% |
| 1996 | #860 | 232 | 0.0132% |
| 1995 | #1,005 | 186 | 0.0106% |
| 1994 | #978 | 189 | 0.0106% |
| 1993 | #982 | 189 | 0.0104% |
| 1992 | #1,102 | 163 | 0.0088% |
| 1991 | #985 | 191 | 0.0102% |
| 1990 | #982 | 188 | 0.0099% |
| 1989 | #1,039 | 165 | 0.0090% |
| 1988 | #1,097 | 143 | 0.0080% |
| 1987 | #1,249 | 113 | 0.0065% |
| 1986 | #1,606 | 74 | 0.0043% |
| 1985 | #1,539 | 79 | 0.0046% |
| 1984 | #2,315 | 42 | 0.0025% |
| 1983 | #2,403 | 39 | 0.0023% |
| 1982 | #2,384 | 41 | 0.0024% |
| 1981 | #1,921 | 56 | 0.0034% |
| 1980 | #2,256 | 44 | 0.0026% |
| 1979 | #1,981 | 52 | 0.0032% |
| 1978 | #1,868 | 53 | 0.0035% |
| 1977 | #2,269 | 40 | 0.0026% |
| 1976 | #3,315 | 21 | 0.0014% |
| 1975 | #3,816 | 17 | 0.0012% |
| 1974 | #2,855 | 25 | 0.0017% |
| 1973 | #4,428 | 13 | 0.0009% |
| 1972 | #3,310 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 1971 | #5,226 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1970 | #3,762 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1969 | #3,125 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1968 | #3,661 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 1967 | #2,899 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 1966 | #4,992 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1965 | #5,446 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1964 | #4,434 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1963 | #4,343 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1962 | #3,476 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1961 | #6,038 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1960 | #4,551 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1957 | #5,048 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #5,332 | 6 | 0.0003% |
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 Elyssa 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.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Elyssa's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Elyssa's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.