Elsie
A Scottish short form of Elspeth, the Scots version of Elizabeth. The underlying Hebrew name Elisheva joins a word for God with a root meaning oath.
Elsie in 2025
Elsie was given to 2,236 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 295th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 1,483 babies born.
The history of Elsie
Elsie reached its highest point in 1918, when 5,221 babies were given the name, ranking 87th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 44th, in 1896.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 190,958 babies have been named Elsie. Half of them were born before 1922, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Greatest Generation.
Elsie by decade
| Decade | Babies named Elsie | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 6,677 | 57 |
| 1890s | 16,456 | 44 |
| 1900s | 18,555 | 47 |
| 1910s | 39,471 | 57 |
| 1920s | 42,328 | 93 |
| 1930s | 22,513 | 152 |
| 1940s | 11,285 | 282 |
| 1950s | 5,372 | 542 |
| 1960s | 2,564 | 932 |
| 1970s | 1,295 | 1,475 |
| 1980s | 1,174 | 1,828 |
| 1990s | 1,456 | 1,857 |
| 2000s | 2,597 | 1,272 |
| 2010s | 9,134 | 531 |
| 2020s | 10,081 | 295 |
Where Elsie is heading
Elsie has risen 164% over the past decade, from 848 babies in 2015 to 2,236 in 2025.
Names like Elsie
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Elsie.