Anna: Name Meaning, Origin, Popularity

Are you seeking a traditionally feminine name that is consistently popular in the English-speaking world and beyond? Anna might be the name you are looking for.

The name Anna comes to us from the Hebrew word חַנָּה (Ḥannāh or ‎Chanah), meaning “grace” or “favor.” The ancient Romans also used Anna as a name meaning “the year’s cycle.”

Origin: When the Old Testament was translated from Hebrew into Greek, the name Hannah was rendered as Ἄννα (Hanna), which was then Latinized as Anna.
Gender: Anna is traditionally a feminine name. While boys have been named Anna, it is relatively rare.
Pronunciation: ANN-a

Editor's Note

Although baby names are often separated by gender, Parents believes that sex need not play any role in your name selection process. It’s important to select the name that you feel best suits your new baby.

How Popular Is the Name Anna?

Anna has consistently ranked among the top 100 baby names for girls in America since 1972, peaking at No. 19 in the year 2001. In 2023, Anna ranked as the No. 79 girl's name in the US.

The name was even more popular a century ago, ranking among the top 10 girl names in America from 1880 to 1920. From 1880 to 1899, Anna was the second most popular name for girls in the US, the most popular being Mary. Anna dipped in popularity in the 1950s and 60s but rose again in the 70s and 80s.

The name Anna was occasionally used for boys in the early part of the 20th century, but from 1930 to the present, this has been quite uncommon.

Name Variations

The name Anne was originally a French version of Anna, and Ann an English spelling of Anne, but all three of these are now widely used in the English-speaking world. Also very common is the Spanish and Portuguese spelling Ana.

Some other common forms:

Anča (Romanian)
Anikó (Hungarian)
Ane (Danish)
Aneta (Czech)
Anka (Polish)
Ania (Russian)
Anita (Portuguese)
Annica (Swedish)
Annuka (Finnish)
Anouk (Dutch)
Chanah (Hebrew)
Hajna (Hungarian)
Hanna (German)

Many names have also developed based on diminutive forms of Anna/Ana, including:

Anita (Spanish)
Anja (Danish)
Anka (Russian)
Annetta (Italian)
Annette (French)
Annie (English)
Annika (Swedish)

Similar Names

Anna has also been mashed up or combined with other names, either with Anna/Ana at the beginning (such as Anabel/Anabelle/Annabelle, Annalee/Annaleigh, or Ana Maria/Annemarie) or at the end (such as Julianna/Julianne, Mariana/Marianne/Maryanne, Pollyanna/Pollyanne, or Rosanna/Roseanne).

More classic, traditionally feminine names:

Clara
Dorothy
Elizabeth
Emma
Grace
Helen
Lily
Margaret
Rose

More girl names starting with "A" include:

Abigail
Alexandra
Alice
Amelia
Andrea
Ashley
Audrey
Aurora
Avery

Suggested Sibling Names

Potential names to pair with Anna are:

Adam
Arthur
Carolyn
Deborah
Henry
James
Mary
Matthew
Ruth
Sasha
Thomas

Famous People Named Anna

As a popular name, Anna is common among famous figures.

Historical Annas

Anna of Hohenstaufen (1230–1307), Empress of Nicaea
Anna of Austria (1528–1590), daughter of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain (1549–1580), Queen consort of Spain, wife of Philip II
Anne of Austria, Queen of Poland (1573–1598), Queen consort of Poland and Sweden, wife of Sigismund III Vasa
Anna of Tyrol (1585–1618), Holy Roman Empress
Anna de' Medici, Archduchess of Austria (1616–1676), Italian noble, Austrian royal consort
Anna of Russia (1693–1740), Empress of Russia
Anna Pavlovna of Russia (1795–1865), Queen consort of the Netherlands, wife of William II

Modern Annas

Anna Mae Bullock, American singer better known as Tina Turner
Anna Faris, American actress known for starring in the Scary Movie film series
Anna Freud (1895–1982), English psychoanalyst, the daughter of Sigmund Freud
Anna Gardner (1816–1901), American abolitionist, teacher, and poet
Anna Kendrick, American film and stage actress known for her roles in the Twilight and Pitch Perfect film series
Anna Kournikova, Russian tennis player
Anna Harriette Leonowens (1831–1915), English travel writer and educator whose memoir was the basis for the musical The King and I
Anna Margaret Collins, American singer-songwriter and actress known for her work on the soundtrack for the Disney Channel movie Starstruck
Anna Paquin, Canadian-born New Zealand actress known for her roles in the X-Men film series and the HBO TV series True Blood
Anna Rutgers van der Loeff (1910–1990), Dutch writer, author of the novels Children on the Oregon Trail and Avalanche!
Anna Schwartz (1915–2012), American economist and writer who worked at the National Bureau of Economic Research and contributed to The New York Times

Anna Nicole Smith (1967–2007), American model and actress who was the subject of the reality program The Anna Nicole Show
Anna Wise, Grammy Award-winning American singer known for her collaboration with rapper Kendrick Lamar

Fictional Annas

Anna, the sister of Queen Dido in Virgil’s Aeneid
Anna, Princess of Arendelle, a main character in Disney’s Frozen film series
Anna Karenina, the title character in an 1878 novel by Leo Tolstoy

More Baby Names

Still searching for the perfect baby name? Check out these related baby name lists for even more options:

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Sources

Parents uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Popularity of Name Anna. Social Security Administration. 2024.
Popular Names by Birth Year. Social Security Administration. 2024.
Popularity of Name Anna (Male). Social Security Administration. 2024.

Anna Name Meaning