Alison (given name)

Alison is a unisex given name in English-speaking countries. It was originally a medieval French nickname for Alis, an old form of Alice[1][2] derived with the suffix -on or -son sometimes used in the former French nicknames. The Middle English form was Alisoun.

Alison
Pronunciation/ˈælɪsən/ AL-i-sən
GenderUnisex
Origin
Meaning"son of Allen"; "son of Ellis"; "son of Alexander"; "son of Alice"; "Alice"; "little Alice"
Other names
Variant form(s)Alisoun, Alisson, Allison, Allisson, Allyson, Allysson, Alyson, Alysson, Alicen, Alycen

The variant spelling Allison is the most common form in the United States.[2] Other variations include Allisan, Alisson, Allisson, Allyson, Allysson, Alyson, Alysson, Alicen and Alycen, with nicknames Allie, Alley, Alie, Ali, Ally, Aly, Al, Aley and Alli.

Allison also has separate, disputed roots as a family name.[3][4]

Alison, variant form Alizon, is also a French surname.[1]

Popularity

The name is first recorded in Scotland in the 12th century. It was popular until the early 19th century and, spelled Allison, was the 45th most common name given to baby girls in the United States in 2005 (Allyson was #253; Alison, #259; Alyson, #468; Allie, #256; Ally, #656; and Alice, #414).[5] In 1990 in the United States, Allison was the 228th most popular name for women of all ages; Alison was #347, Allyson, #775; Alyson, #981; Allie, #764; Ali, #2434; and Alice, #51.[6] Alison in any spelling did not enter the top 100 baby names in 2005 in England and Wales.[7]

Allison last entered the top 1000 baby names for males in the United States in 1946, when it ranked #968. In the 1910s it ranked from 667 to 981 with an average of #835, and in the first decade of the 20th century, it ranked as high as #927.[8]

In Lusophone countries like Brazil and Portugal, Alison and variant forms are also used as masculine given names.

People named Alison

Female

Male

Fiction

See also

References
  1. Albert Dauzat, Noms et prénoms de France, Librairie Larousse 1980, édition revue et commentée par Marie-Thérèse Morlet. p. 6a.
  2. Katie Martin-Doyle, The Treasury of Baby Names, Worth Press, Cambridge 2005. ISBN 978-1903025116.
  3. "Allison – Name Meaning and Origin". Ancestry.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-12.
  4. "Surname Database: Allison Last Name Origin". Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  5. Popular Names by Birth Year: Dec 2007 Ssa.gov
  6. "Most Common Female Names in the U.S." mongabay.com.
  7. "Most Popular Names for Births in England and Wales 2005". behindthename.com
  8. Campbell, Mike (2012). "Popularity for ALLISON in the United States, percent Used, Male". Behind the Name: the etymology and history of first names. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
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