Elyssa
Respelling of Elissa, the second name Virgil gives Dido, queen of Carthage, of Phoenician origin. It is also treated as a variant of Alyssa.
Elyssa in 2025
Elyssa was given to 26 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 8,699th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 127,513 babies born.
The history of Elyssa
Elyssa reached its highest point in 2004, when 273 babies were given the name, ranking 1,583rd that year. Its best-ever ranking was 1,442nd, in 1998.
Across the 72 years of records since 1954, 7,272 babies have been named Elyssa. Half of them were born before 2001, which places the name's centre of gravity with Generation Z.
Elyssa by decade
| Decade | Babies named Elyssa | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 13 | 7,593 |
| 1960s | 116 | 4,449 |
| 1970s | 266 | 2,972 |
| 1980s | 796 | 1,776 |
| 1990s | 2,093 | 1,442 |
| 2000s | 2,418 | 1,562 |
| 2010s | 1,257 | 2,284 |
| 2020s | 313 | 3,967 |
Where Elyssa is heading
Elyssa has fallen 75% over the past decade, from 105 babies in 2015 to 26 in 2025.
Names like Elyssa
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Elyssa.