Alexis (given name)
Gender | Unisex |
---|---|
Language(s) | Greek |
Origin | |
Meaning | "helper, defender" |
Other names | |
See also | Alexander, Alexandra, Alex, Lexi, Alejandro, Alejandra, Alexius, Lex |
Alexis is a given name derived from several saints venerated by the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches, including Saint Alexis of Rome. Alexis (Greek ἀλέξω or aléxo) means "to help, defend". It was also used as a name for several members of the ruling house of Russia, including Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, Tsarevich (heir apparent) Alexei Nikolaevich, and Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich.
The name is internationally male, at the same time in the United States it has been a predominantly girls' name since at least the 1940s, when actress Alexis Smith began appearing in films. It has been among the top 50 most popular names for girls in the United States since 1990. In the 2008 book 5-Star Baby Name Advisor, author Bruce Lansky writes that the girls' name has the image of a "sexy and seductive knockout."[1] The increase in popularity of the name is sometimes attributed to the notable character Alexis Colby from the American television series Dynasty. A 1978 film, Ice Castles, featured as the main character a blind figure skater named Alexis "Lexie" Winston.
Aleksi, a Finnish variant, was the third most popular name for boys born in Finland in 2007.[2] Alessia, an Italian feminine variant, was the second most common name for girls born in Italy in 2006.[3] Alesia, a feminine variant, and Aleksio, a masculine variant, are currently popular names for boys and girls in Albania.
Masculine variants
- Aleksi, Aleksis (Finnish)
- Aleix (Catalan)
- Aleixo (Galician), (Portuguese)
- Alejo (Spanish)
- Алексей (Alexei, Alexey, Aleksei, Aleksey), Алексий (Alexiy), Алёша (Alyosha), Лёша (Lyosha) (Russian)
- Алекси, Aleksi (Bulgarian)
- ალექსი, Aleksi (Georgian)
- Aleks (Albanian)
- Aleksije, Aleksej (Serbo-Croatian)
- Aleksy (Polish)
- Aleš (Czech), (Slovene)
- Alessio (Italian)
- Alexej (Czech)
- Alexis (Spanish), (English), (French)
- Αλέξιος (Alexios), Αλέξης (Alexis) (Greek)
- Alexius (Latin)
- Elek (Hungarian)
- Lex (English)
- Олексій (Oleksii, Oleksiy) (Ukrainian)
Feminine variants
- Aleja (Spanish)
- Alesia (Albanian)
- Alessia (Italian)
- Alexa (English)
- Alexia (English), (Galician), (German), (Greek), (Spanish), (French)
- Aléxia (Portuguese)
- Alexina (English)
- Alexis (English)
- Lexa (English)
- Lexia (English)
- Lexi (English)
- Lexie (English)
- Lexis (English)
- Lexus (English)
- Lexy (English)
- Олекса (Oleksa) (Ukrainian)
People
- Alexis Alexiou, Greek footballer
- Alexis Alexopoulos, Greek sprinter
- Alexis Alexoudis, Greek footballer
- Alexis Argüello (1952–2009), Nicaraguan boxer and politician
- Alexis Arquette, American transgender actress and musician, of the Arquette acting family
- Alexis Simon Belle (1674–1734), French portrait artist
- Alexis Bledel, actress
- Alexis Christoforous, WCBS-TV Wall Street reporter
- Alexis Denisof, actor
- Alexis de Tocqueville, French political thinker and historian
- Alexis Dziena, actress
- Alexis Galanos, Cypriot politician
- Alexis Gavrilopoulos, Greek footballer
- Alexis Georgoulis, Greek actor
- Alexis Giraud-Teulon (1839–1916), French academic, lawyer and translator
- Alexis Jordan (swimmer), Barbadian swimmer
- Alexis Jordan, American singer
- Alexis Kaufman (born 1991), birth name of American professional wrestler Alexa Bliss
- Alexis Kochan, Ukrainian-Canadian musician and composer
- Alexis Korner (1928–1984), musician
- Alexis Laree, American professional wrestler
- Alexis Loizidis, Greek footballer
- Alexis Lykiard (born 1940), British writer of Greek heritage
- Alexis Matias, Puerto Rican volleyball player
- Alexis Méndez, Venezuelan track and road cyclist
- Alexis Minotis, Greek theater actor and director
- Alexis Ohanian, American internet entrepreneur and investor
- Alexis Panselinos, Greek novelist and translator
- Alexis Papahelas, Greek investigative journalist and newspaper editor
- Alexis Rios, Puerto Rican baseball player
- Alexis Rojas, Colombian road cyclist
- Alexei Romanov (disambiguation), various members of the Romanov family
- Alexis Ruano Delgado, Spanish footballer
- Alexis Rykov, Leader of the Soviet Union from 1924 to 1930
- Alexis Sánchez, Chilean footballer who plays for Manchester United FC
- Alexis Skye, model
- Alexis Smith, actress
- Alexis Suárez Martín, Spanish footballer
- Alexis Texas, American porn actress
- Alexis Tipton, American voice actress
- Alexis Tsipras, Greek politician
- Alexis Valido, Spanish volleyball player
Fictional characters
- Alexis Colby, a character played by Joan Collins on the 1980s prime time soap opera Dynasty
- Alexis Meade, a character played by Rebecca Romijn on the American television series Ugly Betty
- Alexis Castle, a character played by Molly Quinn on the American crime drama television series Castle
- Alexis Leonides, a Greek writer who features in Geoffrey Trease's novels The Hills of Varna and The Crown of Violet
- Alexis Rhodes, a main character in the anime series Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, voiced by Priscilla Everett and Emlyn Morinelli McFarland
- Alexis Thi Dang, a character in the Transformers Unicron Trilogy, voiced by Tabitha St. Germain
- Alexis Zorbas, the protagonist of Zorba the Greek
See also
- Alexis (disambiguation), which includes people known by the mononym Alexis and people with the surname Alexis
Notes
- ^ Lansky, p. 16
- ^ Helsingin Sanomat, October 16, 2007.Aino and Eetu top list of most popular children's names. Retrieved February 10, 2008.
- ^ Rosenkrantz, Linda, and Satran, Pamela Redmond (2008). Cool Names for Babies. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-37786-1, p. 21
References
- Lansky, Bruce (2008). 5-Star Baby Name Advisor. Meadowbrook Press. ISBN 978-0-684-05784-2