Ellis

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Ellis

Gender: Masculine, Feminine
Language: English
Etymology:
1. Ellis the masculine name is taken from the surname Ellis, from Elijah, or Elias. Elijah comes from a Hebrew name meaning “God is Jehovah” from “El” and “Jahweh,” both of which refer to the Lord.
-or-
2. Ellis the feminine name is a holdover from a medieval spelling of the name Alice. Alice is a contraction of the name Adelaide (Adelais to Adeliz to Aliz to Alice). Adelaide is the French form of an old Germanic name, Adalheidis, or Adelheit. It originally meant “Noble” from “athel” (noble) and “haidu” (kind, sort, type).

History:
Instead of Elijah, medieval Britons used the Greek-inspired name of Elias, or Ellis.

Although Ellis was replaced by the more learned, Hebraic Elijah by the 17th century Puritans. However, Ellis lived on as a surname, and as such, was transferred for use as a first name in the 19th century.

Please see Elijah for more information.

Pronunciation: ell-iss.

Famous Bearers:
Artists and Authors:
Ellis Wynne (m., 1671-1734)
Welsh author.
Ellis Peters (f., 1913-1995)
British author.

Educators, Scholars, and Social Workers:
Ellis Oberholtzer (m., 1868-1936)
American historian.

Places:
Ellis Island
New York City. A famous American immigration station.

Singers and Entertainers:
Ellis Rabb (1930-1998)
American filmmaker.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census, for males:
0.024 % named Ellis

Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census, for females:
0.001 % named Ellis

Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census, surnames:
0.077 % surnamed Ellis

Popularity of Ellis, for males:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1850: 232nd most popular.
1875: 202nd most popular.
1900-1910: 191st most popular.
1910-1920: 209th most popular.
1920-1930: 225th most popular.
1930-1940: 279th most popular.
1940-1950: 308th most popular.
1950-1960: 365th most popular.
1960-1970: 515th most popular.
1970-1980: 678th most popular.
1980-1990: 766th most popular.
1990: 788th most popular.
1991: 774th most popular.
1992: 777th most popular.
1993: 832nd most popular.
1994: 855th most popular.
1995: 840th most popular.
1996: 785th most popular.
1997: 776th most popular.
1998: 810th most popular.
1999: 863rd most popular.
2000: 786th most popular.
2001: 930th most popular.
2002: 916th most popular.
2003: 829th most popular.