Alex is a unisex name of Greek origin meaning “to defend.” In 2024 it was given to 1,809 babies in the United States.
Alex belongs to the Greek tradition. Its meaning — “to defend” — is the sense carried by its Greek roots, and it is the meaning we verified against published sources for this page.
In the United States, Alex first appears in Social Security records in 1880 and has been given to 294,382 babies since 1880, including 1,809 in 2024.
More names from the Greek shelf:
Alex means “to defend” in its Greek roots. We check every meaning against published sources before it appears here.
Alex is a unisex name. In 2024, 1,809 babies received the name in the US.
Alex comes from the Greek tradition.
Alex is uncommon in US records — it first appears in 1880 and has been given to 294,382 babies since 1880.
Alex is pronounced /ˈæl.ɪks/ (IPA).
Meaning and origin for this page were checked against this source. US popularity figures are from the Social Security Administration's public baby-names data. If you spot an error, write to [email protected] — accuracy is the whole point of this site, and corrections are made fast.
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