UK girl's name
Anne
Of Hebrew origin meaning "favor" or "grace".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Anne is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Anne popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1036, with 33 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1996, with 72 births.
This profile covers 1,100 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 46% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 3,298 living people in the UK are called Anne. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Anne ranked #1036 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 33 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1996, when 72 girls were registered as Anne.
- • Anne ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #358 in 2015.
- • About 3,298 living people in the UK are estimated to have Anne as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#1036
2024
Births in 2024
33
Latest year
Peak year
1996
72 births
Estimated living
3,298
2026
Meaning
What does Anne mean?
The name Anne has its origins in the ancient Hebrew name Hannah, which means "grace" or "favor." It is derived from the Hebrew word "hanan," meaning "to be gracious." The name gained popularity in early Christianity and was later adopted by various European cultures.
The earliest recorded use of the name Anne dates back to the 1st century AD, when it was mentioned in the New Testament as the name of a prophetess in the Gospel of Luke. This biblical reference helped popularize the name among early Christians.
In the 4th century, St. Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary, became a prominent figure in early Christian tradition. Her cult following contributed to the widespread use of the name Anne throughout Europe during the Middle Ages.
Anne was a popular name among European royalty and nobility. Notable examples include Anne of Brittany (1477-1514), the twice-crowned Queen of France, and Anne Boleyn (c. 1501-1536), the second wife of King Henry VIII of England, whose marriage played a significant role in the English Reformation.
In the literary world, Anne Bradstreet (c. 1612-1672) was an influential American poet and the first female writer to be published in the British North American colonies. Anne Radcliffe (1764-1823) was an English author and a pioneer of the Gothic novel genre.
The name Anne has also been associated with notable scientists and activists. Anne Marie Lavoisier (1758-1836) was a French chemist and the wife of Antoine Lavoisier, known for her contributions to the advancement of chemistry. Anne Frank (1929-1945) was a German-Dutch diarist whose diary became a powerful testament to the atrocities of the Holocaust.
Throughout history, the name Anne has been a popular choice across various cultures and regions, reflecting its enduring appeal and significance.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Anne over time
The chart below shows babies named Anne registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Anne, the clearest high point is 1996. The latest England and Wales figure is 33 births in 2024, compared with 72 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Anne by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Anne was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #1318 | 127 | 5 |
| 2010s | #1129 | 304 | 10 |
| 2000s | #727 | 430 | 10 |
| 1990s | #491 | 239 | 4 |
Geography
Where Anne is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Anne. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Anne ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #358 in 2015.
Across the UK
Anne in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#638 in 2024
44 years of NRS records, 2,205 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#358 in 2015
11 years of NISRA records, 48 total registered
Related
Names similar to Anne
- Amelia 94,830
- Ava 54,556
- Amy 52,495
- Alice 46,815
- Abigail 45,658
- Amber 31,922
- Anna 27,802
- Alexandra 19,455
- Amelie 18,051
- Abbie 15,971
- Aimee 15,158
- Annabelle 15,120
FAQ
Anne: questions and answers
How popular is the name Anne in the UK right now?
In 2024, Anne was ranked #1036 for girls in England and Wales, with 33 births registered.
When was Anne most popular?
The peak year on record was 1996, with 72 babies registered as Anne in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Anne?
Of Hebrew origin meaning "favor" or "grace".
How many people are called Anne in the UK?
A total of 1,100 babies have been registered as Anne across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 2,205 more in Scotland and 48 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Anne most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Anne ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #358 in 2015. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.