Names That Mean Elder

A multicultural name, that's currently on style and fits right in with Kaia, Maya, Raya, and Mia. Currently in the Top 500 in both the UK and The Netherlands, it has several different origins and meanings.

In the past few years Ellery has gone from middle-aged male detective -- from old school fictional hero Ellery Queen -- to a plausible girls' name, a la Hillary.

The "el-" sound is red-hot these days, and a myriad of place names and surnames give this name a wealth of possible namesakes. The main drawback is its kinship to the name of the hero of the Legally Blond series, Elle Woods, though that will fade with time.

Ellery is a rhythmic three-syllable boy's name that is familiar and yet rarely used--and just waiting to be discovered. It's long been identified with Ellery Queen--which was both the pen name of two cousins, Frederic Dannay and Manfred B. Lee, and the detective they created.

Variant of Ellery

Among the Ga speakers of Ghana, Akwete is the name traditionally given to an elder female twin. Akwokwo is the name for a younger female twin.