Evelyn
- Gender
- Female
- Meaning
- From Aveline through an English surname; ultimate meaning uncertain
- Origin
- English
Meaning and history of Evelyn
Evelyn developed as a given name from an English surname derived from Aveline. Aveline has an older Norman French and Germanic name history. The earlier “Light” and “Life” descriptions did not establish that history and have been removed.
The name was used for boys before becoming predominantly feminine in modern English use. This history is distinct from a claim about every present-day bearer or a prediction of gender identity. A resemblance to Eve does not by itself establish the same derivation.
Pronunciation can vary. The cited reference records English forms with both an EV- opening and an EEV- opening in British use. Ask how family members intend to say it rather than assuming the spelling settles the sound.
Etymology references: Behind the Name, Evelyn, Aveline. Reviewed October 27, 2026. Popularity evidence is shown separately below.
By Marvin Tang. Popularity figures use an imported selection of SSA records; SSA does not supply name meanings or etymologies. Editorial references, where available, are listed with the name explanation. Sources and coverage.
Quick Facts About Evelyn
US Popularity History (1894–2025)
Annual imported US counts for Evelyn by recorded sex, from US Social Security Administration records. Highest count in the imported records: 1921 with 14,278 girls named Evelyn (girl rank #12 that year).
Latest imported observation: in 2025, ranked #8 for girls (9,123 imported records). That's 4 places above its earlier 1921 peak — the latest stored rank is higher than its rank at the highest observed count; rank and count measure different things.
Source: US Social Security Administration. Coverage: imported US Social Security card-application records, not a complete birth census. Historical coverage is narrower, including top-100 selection before 2000; recent imports also use catalog and rank filters. Missing rows can reflect those filters or source privacy limits and must not be read as zero or fewer than five uses. Spellings and recorded sex are kept separate.
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Look up Evelyn across states
Compare this exact spelling in one year and recorded sex list. Missing state records remain unknown.
Observed State Ranks for Evelyn
Average girl-name rank across the same 2016–2025 window, limited to 51 jurisdictions with every year imported. A lower number means the name appears closer to the top of that state's girls-name rankings. This is an ordinal comparison, not a per-capita rate. States with missing years are excluded. For Evelyn the lowest observed averages are in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota.
Lowest observed average rank
| # | State | Avg rank | Imported count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota | #3 | 2,583 |
| 2 | Wisconsin | #3 | 2,431 |
| 3 | North Dakota | #4 | 432 |
| 4 | Iowa | #4 | 1,341 |
| 5 | Oregon | #4 | 1,458 |
| 6 | Idaho | #4 | 806 |
| 7 | Nebraska | #5 | 857 |
| 8 | Utah | #5 | 1,743 |
| 9 | Washington | #5 | 2,896 |
| 10 | Kansas | #5 | 1,219 |
Highest observed average rank
| # | State | Avg rank | Imported count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey | #39 | 1,553 |
| 2 | Hawaii | #34 | 191 |
| 3 | Florida | #27 | 3,701 |
| 4 | Connecticut | #24 | 752 |
| 5 | Mississippi | #23 | 564 |
| 6 | Rhode Island | #22 | 241 |
| 7 | Nevada | #22 | 624 |
| 8 | District of Columbia | #22 | 241 |
| 9 | New York | #20 | 4,049 |
| 10 | West Virginia | #19 | 460 |
Source: SSA state-level baby-name dataset 2016–2025. Only states with all 10 annual observations for this spelling and recorded sex are compared. Missing states are excluded, not assigned zero. Average rank measures position in state rankings, not a per-capita rate. Local import filters and SSA privacy limits can both create gaps. Coverage and limitations.
Related Forms in This Catalog
Open each form for its own meaning, language history, and exact-spelling usage records.
Looking for names like Evelyn?
A dedicated page with 60+ related names — spelling variants, rhymes, alliterations, same-origin matches, and shared meaning concepts — lives at its own URL so each kind of similarity gets a deeper treatment than fits here.
Compare Evelyn to Other Popular Names
Side-by-side popularity charts and crossover years for Evelyn against names with the largest imported counts for girls-name peers (top 8 with every year imported, 2016–2025). Names with missing annual observations are excluded from this comparison.
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