Alison
A Norman French diminutive of Alice, so from the Germanic “noble kind.”
Popularity, 1880–2025
Alison first shows up in the national records in 1905. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1985 to 1987. Its biggest year was 1980, when 2,980 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 101 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1986, at No. 96. In 2025 it ranked No. 476 for girls. All told, 117,481 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Allison (322,944), Allyson (53,779), Alyson (29,740), Alisson (7,049), Allisson (2,842), Alysson (1,569) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Alice
Explore Alison interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 12 | No. 1538 |
| 1910s | 134 | No. 1344 |
| 1920s | 198 | No. 1502 |
| 1930s | 367 | No. 961 |
| 1940s | 1,450 | No. 449 |
| 1950s | 6,216 | No. 254 |
| 1960s | 12,233 | No. 221 |
| 1970s | 22,070 | No. 102 |
| 1980s | 27,018 | No. 96 |
| 1990s | 19,729 | No. 132 |
| 2000s | 13,286 | No. 228 |
| 2010s | 10,150 | No. 253 |
| 2020s | 4,023 | No. 440 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.