Eleanor

#3 in Missouri

Meaning of Eleanor

Eleanor is a time-tested charmer whose roots reach back to medieval Provence. Thought to spring from the Old French Aliénor—possibly a poetic blend meaning “other Aenor,” or a cousin of the Greek Helen, “bright, shining one”—the name has carried light through the centuries. History offers a glittering roll call: the steel-willed Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, trail-blazing First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, and even the melancholy muse of the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby.” Today it’s pronounced EL-uh-nor, although many Brits soften the ending to EL-uh-nuh, and its popularity curve tells a comeback story worthy of a bestseller: after a mid-century nap, Eleanor has rocketed from 5,549 newborns in 2017 to more than 7,000 in 2024, planting it firmly in the U.S. Top 20. Elegant yet friendly, vintage yet vibrant, Eleanor slips as easily onto a kindergarten cubby as it does onto a corner office nameplate. For parents who want a classic with quiet power and a hint of literary sparkle, Eleanor delivers.

Pronunciation

American English

  • Pronunced as EL-uh-nor (/ˈɛlənɔr/)

British English

  • Pronunced as EL-uh-nuh (/ˈɛlənə/)

U.S. Popularity Chart

States Popularity Chart

Notable People Named Eleanor

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was a pioneering American political leader and activist, the longest serving First Lady, a UN delegate, and a driving force behind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Eleanor of Aquitaine was a powerful medieval heiress who became Duchess of Aquitaine and queen of France and England, ruling with Louis VII, Henry II, and her sons Richard I and John.
Eleanor of Toledo, a Spanish noblewoman and Duchess of Florence, financed campaigns and the Pitti Palace for Cosimo I de Medici, ruled as regent in his absence, and is often called the first modern first lady.
Eleanor of Castile, born in 1307 and died in 1359, was Queen of Aragon as the wife of King Alfonso IV from 1329 to 1336.
Eleanor Norcross was an American painter trained by William Merritt Chase and Alfred Stevens who lived mostly in Paris and is best known for Impressionist portraits still lifes and genteel interior scenes.
Eleanor Farjeon was an English writer best known for stories and plays for children, along with poetry, biography, history and satire.
Eleanor Flexner was an American pioneer of women's studies whose 1959 book Century of Struggle linked the suffrage movement to broader 19th and early 20th century campaigns for education, labor rights, abolition, and temperance.
Eleanor Elkins Widener was an American heiress and philanthropist who survived the Titanic and honored her husband and son with major gifts, including the Widener Library at Harvard and the renovation of St. Pauls Episcopal Church.
Eleanor Beardsley is an NPR Paris correspondent reporting since 2004 on France and increasingly on major European issues.
Eleanor Holm was an American Olympic gold medalist swimmer who competed in 1928 and 1932, was controversially expelled from the 1936 team, and later became a socialite and interior designer who co-starred in Tarzan's Revenge.
Eleanor Robson is a British Assyriologist and Professor of Ancient Middle Eastern History at University College London, former chair of the British Institute for the Study of Iraq, Quondam Fellow of All Souls College, and Fellow of the British Academy.
Eleanor Post Hutton - Eleanor Close Barzin was an American heiress and socialite whose surname changed from Close to Hutton after her mother's 1920 marriage to Edward Francis Hutton, and to Barzin for life after marrying Leon Barzin.
Eleanor Clifford, Countess of Cumberland, was the daughter of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, and Princess Mary Tudor, and the sister or half-sister of Frances Brandon, Anne Brandon, Mary Brandon, Henry Brandon 1st Earl of Lincoln, Henry Brandon 2nd Duke of Suffolk, and Charles Brandon 3rd Duke of Suffolk.
Eleanor May Tomlinson is an English actress known for films like Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, Jack the Giant Slayer, Colette and Love Wedding Repeat, and for TV roles in The White Queen, Poldark, The Outlaws and War of the Worlds.
Diana Brooks
Curated byDiana Brooks

Assistant Editor