Girl · Breton (via English) · International
Alana
AlanaSay it uh-LAH-nuh
- Meaning today
- Precious, beautiful
- Original meaning
- "feminine of Alan, an Old Breton saint's name of uncertain meaning" Online Etymology Dictionary, s.v. Alan
- Say it
- uh-LAH-nuh
- Other spellings
- Alanna, Alannah
Alana
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Alana meaning
Alana is an international girl's name of Breton origin (via English).
Meaning today
Precious, beautiful
Original Breton (via English) meaning
"feminine of Alan, an Old Breton saint's name of uncertain meaning"
Source: Online Etymology Dictionary, s.v. Alan · entry Alan · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026
Alana is a feminine form of Alan. According to etymonline, Alan reached England in 1066 with the Bretons who fought alongside William the Conqueror; it was the name of a saint popular in Brittany and Wales. What Alan originally meant is not known for certain. Name lists usually give Alana as "precious" or "beautiful", and some link it to the Irish phrase a leanbh, "O child", or to a Hawaiian word, but we could not confirm these senses in the dictionaries. The name is said uh-LAH-nuh or uh-LAN-uh, and it sounds natural with Indian surnames.
References: Online Etymology Dictionary, Allen / Alan
Popularity abroad
- #140 United States, girls 2025 (up 3 from 143 in 2024)
US Social Security Administration - #244 England and Wales, girls 2025
Office for National Statistics
Official birth registrations. India publishes no national name statistics.
Spellings
Alana · Alanna · Alannah