girl's name
Eva
EE-va
- Origin Hebrew
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 3
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 440,476
the United States
#134
2025 births
Eva is a girl's name of Hebrew origin meaning "life" or "living." It is the Latin and continental European form of Eve, from the Hebrew Chavah, and is used across most of Europe with the same spelling.
- Eva is a name of Hebrew origin.
- Peaked in 1918, when 4,575 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,539 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Eva over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 9,811 |
| 1890s | 16,514 |
| 1900s | 18,448 |
| 1910s | 35,044 |
| 1920s | 38,217 |
| 1930s | 22,957 |
| 1940s | 17,656 |
| 1950s | 17,166 |
| 1960s | 13,631 |
| 1970s | 8,642 |
| 1980s | 7,899 |
| 1990s | 8,024 |
| 2000s | 21,372 |
| 2010s | 35,247 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 15,140 |
What Eva means
Eva means life, or she who lives. Genesis explains the name at the moment it is given, calling her the mother of all living, which is one of the few biblical etymologies stated outright in the text.
Where Eva comes from
Eva is the Latin form of the Hebrew Chavah, connected to the verb chayah, to live. The Vulgate used Eva, which is why the form spread across Catholic Europe while English kept Eve. Medieval theology made a great deal of the reversal of Eva into Ave, the opening of the angel's greeting to Mary — the idea that Mary undid Eve's fall was expressed as a literal spelling reversal, and it appears in hymns from the eighth century onward. Eva is standard in German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch and the Slavic languages.
Eva in use
Our data shows Eva stable, peaking in 1918, at 58 in England and Wales. It first appears in our records in 1880 and has never left them — a pattern of uninterrupted use that is much rarer than a peak followed by a revival.
How popular is Eva?
In 2025, Eva was given to 2,154 babies in the United States, ranking #134 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Eva is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Eva is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Éva | Éva is Eva written with an acute accent, used in France, where it ranks #269. | 3,130 |
| Èva | Èva is a rare spelling of Eva, written with a grave accent and recorded about 15 times, mostly in France. | 15 |
Names that peaked alongside Eva
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Eva also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Eva over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Eva
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Eva in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Eva
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Eva — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Eva
What does the name Eva mean?
Eva means "life" or "living," from the Hebrew Chavah.
Are Eva and Ava the same name?
No. Ava's origin is separate and disputed — usually Germanic — though the two have converged in sound and are often confused.
Why is Eva linked to Ave Maria?
Medieval theology read Eva reversed as Ave, expressing the idea that Mary undid Eve's fall. It appears in hymns from the eighth century.
How popular is the name Eva?
In 2025, Eva was given to 2,154 babies in the United States, ranking #134 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Eva a girl's or a boy's name?
Eva is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Eva?
Eva has 2 syllables.
When was Eva most popular?
Eva peaked in 1918, when 4,575 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Eva?
Eva is usually shortened to Evie.
Is Eva a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Eva currently ranks #26 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.