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Else
How to Pronounce Else
Pronounced EL-suh /ΛΙl.sΙ/Low
Meaning: Else is a Danish, Norwegian and German short form of Elisabeth, given for centuries as a name in its own right. Elisabeth traces to the Hebrew Elisheva, read as 'my God is an oath' or 'God is abundance.' In Scandinavian and German use Else is warm and everyday; in English it is pronounced with two syllables to distinguish it from the ordinary word.Low
Popularity in the U.S. Β· SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880βpresent). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Else is a northern European short form of Elisabeth, whose Hebrew source Elisheva means 'my God is an oath' or 'God is abundance.' Common in Scandinavia and Germany, it stayed rare and distinctly heritage-flavored in the United States, and we pronounce it with two syllables to set it apart from the English word.
Else appeared among immigrant and heritage families across the earlier twentieth century, with a small high around 1932 when it was given to only about fifteen girls a year. A woman named Else then would belong to a great-grandparents' generation today, and the name keeps its European character.
Variations
Nicknames
Famous Bearers
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Else Lasker-Schuler (1869 - 1945)German poet and dramatist, a major figure of German Expressionism.
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Else mean?
It is a Scandinavian and German short form of Elisabeth, from the Hebrew Elisheva, 'my God is an oath' or 'God is abundance.'
How do you pronounce Else?
It is said EL-suh /ΛΙl.sΙ/ - two syllables, stress on the first, to set it apart from the English word.
Is Else a boy or girl name?
Else is used as a girl's name.
How popular is Else?
It was always rare in the United States, given to only about fifteen girls a year even at its peak in the early nineteen-thirties.