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Alabama
How to Pronounce Alabama
Pronounced al-uh-BAM-uh /ˌæləˈbæmə/Medium
Meaning: Alabama is a United States place name adopted as a girls' name. The state takes its name from the Alabama, a Muskogean-speaking people of the Southeast; the tribal name is often explained through Choctaw roots as 'plant gatherers' or 'thicket clearers', though its exact sense is debated. As a given name it evokes the state and its Southern associations.Low
Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Alabama is a place name turned given name, drawn from the United States state, which itself takes its name from the Alabama people of the Southeast. The tribal name is usually explained as 'plant gatherers', though scholars note the meaning is uncertain. As a name it carries strong Southern, geographic overtones.
Alabama has always been rare as a girls' name in United States records. It appeared in the mid-nineteen-nineties, reached a quiet high of a couple dozen girls a year around 2007, and stayed uncommon. A girl named Alabama then is in her teens now.
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Alabama mean?
Alabama is a United States place name, the state, from the Alabama people, whose name is often read as 'plant gatherers', though the meaning is debated.
How do you pronounce Alabama?
It's said al-uh-BAM-uh /ˌæləˈbæmə/, four syllables, stress on the third.
Is Alabama a boy or girl name?
Alabama is used here as a girl's name.
Is Alabama a popular name?
No, it has always been rare as a given name, ticking up in the late two-thousands.