Elaine

eh-LAYNE, ee-LAYNE

French and Scottish

"bright, shining light"

Elaine Origin and Meaning

The name Elaine is a girl's name of French, Scottish origin meaning "bright, shining light".

This old Scottish form of Helen has had quite a history, going from appearing as one of the shining heroines of the Arthurian legends, the princess who fell in love with Sir Lancelot and became the mother of Sir Galahad, referred to as 'Elaine the fair' and 'Elaine the lovable', to being the name of the most famous of New York's celebrity restaurants, to being the archetypal New York neurotic on Seinfeld.

Elaine is a homophone for French Helene, just one of many names that a was imported to Scotland during the centuries that Scotland and France had a mutual enemy in England.

Elaine entered the Top 100 in the early 1920s, and remained there for close to forty years, peaking at Number 42. Now, after a long slump, we see signs of a possible rise along with all the other El-names. For parents looking for a more unusual name, try Yvaine.

Elaine Rank in US Top 1000

# 381 in the US

Elaine Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 332 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Elaine

• 381 US 2023
• 332 Nameberry 2025
• 522 Future 2028
• 392 Germany 2016

20 Names Similar to Elaine

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Elaine.

• Cecelia
• Eileen
• Meredith
• Adele
• Camille
• Celine
• Corinne
• Francesca
• Bridget
• Anneliese
• Simone
• Leona
• Nadia
• Annalise
• Lucille
• Camilla
• Johanna
• Annika
• Valerie
• Madeleine

Famous People Named Elaine

• (Katherine) Elaine Hendrix American actress
• Elaine Iva May American director/actress
• Elaine Yiu Hong Kong actress
• Elaine Paige (born Elaine Jill Bickerstaff) English singer and actress
• Elaine Ingham American microbiologist
• Elaine Hamilton O'Neal, American painter
• Elaine Lobl (E.L.) Konigsburg American children's novelist
• Elaine Miles American actress
• Elaine Stritch American actress and singer
• Elaine Marie Catherine de Kooning (born Elaine Marie Fried) American painter, wife of painter Willem de Kooning
• Elaine Jin Chinese actress
• Elaine Youngs American Olympic beach volleyball player
• Elaine Tyler May American historian and author
• Elaine Showalter American literary critic
• Elaine Fifield Australian ballerina

The name Elaine in Pop Culture

• Elaine Marie Benes a main character on TV's "Seinfeld"'
• Elaine of Astolat Arthurian legendary figure
• Elaine Jenkinson from the British TV series "Broadchurch"
• Lady Elaine character in Barbara Cartland's book The Ruthless Rake
• Elaine Austen character in video game "Sims 3" Moonlight Bay
• Elaine Robinson character in book/movie "The Graduate"
• "The Exploits of Elaine " 1914 film serial
• "Elaine " song by ABBA
• "Miss Elaine" song by Run–D.M.C.
• Elaine Marley main character in video game series Monkey Island
• "Elaine " opera by Herman Bemberg
• Elaine of Corbenic legendary Arthurian figure
• Elaine "Ellie " character in novel "Avalon High"
• "Elaine's Big Day " episode of TV's 'New Girl'
• Elaine Dickinson character in the movie "Airplane!"
• Elaine character in the manga/anime "Seven Deadly Sins"
• Elaine main character in the movie 'The Love Witch'

International Variations of the name Elaine

• Elaina French
• Eline Scandinavian
• Elena Italian