Alice (name)

Alice is a feminine first name with roots in the French and German languages.

Etymology

Alice is a form of the Old French name ''Alis / Alys'' (older ''Alais''), short form of ''Adelais'', which is derived from the Old High German ''Adalhaidis'' (see Adelaide (given name), Adelaide), from the Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic words , meaning "noble" and , meaning "appearance; kind" (compare German '' Adel'' "nobility", ''edel'' "noble", nominalizing suffix ''-heit'' "-hood"), hence "of noble character or rank, of nobility". ''Alaïs'' is the Old French form of the name; Alys of Vexin was also known as Alaïs.

Popularity as a given name

In 2015, the name appeared in the top 100 most popular names for baby girls in Australia, Belgium, France, Canada, Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales, and Northern Ireland. In England and Wales, it was ranked the 24th most popular name in 2015, but it has been less popular in the US until a recent resurgence. Some sources cite the resurgence starting in 2000, while others showed an up swing starting in 2010 One source attributes this to Tina Fey having named her daughter Alice in 2005, though this is more likely a case of coincidence than causality. Other sources attribute the rise in popularity to media sources such as the ''Twilight'' books by Stephenie Meyer. In Sweden and Italy it has appeared in the top ten names in recent years. In 2022, it was the 11th most popular name given to girls in Canada.

The name was most popular in the US in the Victorian era and at the turn of the 20th century. It has been popularized by ''Alice in Wonderland'', by Lewis Carroll. It was also popular in the Victorian era due to The Princess Alice, a daughter of Queen Victoria. In the US, Alice Roosevelt Longworth, daughter of Theodore Roosevelt, was occasionally known as "Princess Alice" in the press and inspired a song called "Alice Blue Gown".

Variants

Variants of the given name today include '' Alicia'', '' Alison'', and a short form, ''Allie'', with many spelling variants. Alisa is a form of the name in popular use in Russia, Estonia and other countries. Aliki is the form used in Greek. Eilish () may be the Irish form.

People with the first name Alice

Royalty and nobility

* Alice of Antioch (1110 – after 1136), princess consort of Antioch by marriage to Bohemond II of Antioch
* Alice of Armenia (1182 – after 1234), ruling Lady of Toron from 1229 to 1234 as the eldest daughter of Ruben III, Prince of Armenia and his wife Isabella of Toron
* Alice of Champagne (1193 – 1246), queen consort and later regent of Cyprus, later regent of Jerusalem
* Alice of Hainault (died 1317), Hainault noblewoman and Countess of Norfolk
* Alice of Namur (died 1169), Lotharingian noblewoman and Countess of Hainault
* Alice of Saluzzo, Countess of Arundel (died 1292), Savoyard noblewoman and English countess
* Alice of Vergy, (1182–1251), Duchess of Burgundy
* Alice Cherleton, Baroness Cherleton (1378–1415), English noblewoman; alleged mistress of Cardinal Beaufort
* Alice de la Roche (died 1282), Burgundian noblewoman and regent of Beirut
* Alice de Lacy, Countess of Lincoln (1281–1348), English peeress in her own right
* Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (1901–2004), member of the British royal family
* Alice FitzRoy (died bef. 1141), illegitimate daughter of King Henry I of England
* Alice Heine (1872–1918), princess consort of Monaco, wife of Albert I of Monaco
* Alice Holland, Countess of Kent (1350–1416), English noblewoman; wife of the half-brother of King Richard II
* Alix of Hesse (1872–1918), Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, daughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
* Countess Alice Széchenyi (1911–1974), Hungarian-American heiress and Countess
* Lady Alice Christabel Montagu-Douglas-Scott (1901–2004), Duchess of Gloucester
* Princess Alice of Battenberg (1885–1969), aka Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark, mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
* Princess Alice of Parma (1849–1935), Grand Duchess of Tuscany
* Princess Alice of the United Kingdom (1843–1878), Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine, daughter of Queen Victoria
* Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (1883–1981), member of the British royal family

Authors and poets

* Alice Adams (1926–1999), American author
* Alice Albinia (born 1976), British author
* Alice Birch, British playwright and screenwriter
* Alice Buckton (1867–1944), British poet, community playwright, feminist and mystic
* Alice Cary (1820–1871), poet
* Alice Childress (1916–1994), American novelist and playwright
* Alice Kingsbury Cooley (1839-1910), British-born American actress, author, and poet
* Alice Arnold Crawford (1850–1874), American poet
* Alice Turner Curtis (1860–1958), American writer
* Alice Williams Brotherton (1848–1930), American writer
* Alice May Douglas (1865–1943), American poet, author, editor
* Alice Olin Dows (1881–1963), American author and socialite
* Alice Dunbar Nelson (1875–1935), American poet, journalist and political activist
* Alice Eyton (1874–1929), New Zealand screenwriter
* Alice Flowerdew (1759–1830), English teacher, hymnwriter, religious poet
* Alice Fulton (born 1952), poet and author
* Alice Gossage (1861–1929), American newspaperwoman and journalist
* Alice Greenwood (1862–1935), British historian, teacher and writer
* Alice Rogers Hager (1894–1969), American writer, journalist, and traveler
* Alice Hayes (1657–1720), English Quaker preacher and autobiographer
* Alice Hoffman (born 1952), author of ''Practical Magic''
* Alice Emma Ives (1876–1930), American dramatist, journalist
* Alice Eleanor Jones (1916–1981), American science fiction writer and journalist
* Alice Kuipers (born 1979), British-Canadian author of young adult novels
* Alice La Mazière (1880–1962), French journalist, socialist and feminist activist
* Alice Elinor Lambert (1886–1981), American romance writer
* Alice Pichen Lee (1883–1943), Chinese activist, newspaper editor, poet, writer and school founder
* Alice MacDonell (1854–1938), Scottish poet
* Alice Marriott (1910–1992), American historian
* Alice Meynell (1847–1922) – British editor, writer, and poet
* Alice Moore McComas (1850–1919), American author, editor, lecturer, reformer
* Alice McDermott (born 1953), author
* Alice Duer Miller (1874–1942), author and poet
* Alice Munro (1931–2024), Canadian author
* Alice Naylor-Leyland, British fashion writer
* Alice Oseman (born 1994), British author and illustrator of young adult fiction
* Alice Oswald (born 1966), British poet
* Alice Parizeau (1930–1990), Polish journalist
* Alice Hobbins Porter (1854–1926), British-born American journalist, editor
* Alice Priestley (born 1962), Canadian children's writer and illustrator
* Alice Rivaz (1901–1998), Swiss author
* Alice Sebold (born 1963), American author of ''The Lovely Bones''
* Alice Sheldon, American science fiction writer better known by her pen name James Tiptree Jr.
* Alice Spigelman, Hungarian-born Australian clinical psychologist, writer and human rights advocate
* Alice Tawhai, pen name of a New Zealand fiction writer
* Alice Thompson, Scottish novelist
* Alice Bellvadore Sams Turner (1859–1915), American physician, writer
* Alice Voinescu (1885–1961), Romanian writer
* Alice Walker (born 1944), novelist, short story writer, poet, and social activist
* Alis Wen (born c. 1520), Welsh language poet
* Alice Willard (1860–1936), American journalist and businesswoman
* Alice Robinson Boise Wood (1846–1919), American classicist and poet
* Alice Zimmern (1855–1939) – British writer, translator and suffragist

Musicians

* Alice (Visconti, born Carla Bissi) (born 1954), Italian singer-songwriter
* Alice (born Song Joo-hee), South Korean singer, a member of Hello Venus
* Alice Babs (1924–2014), Swedish singer and actress
* Alice Bag (born 1958), American punk rock singer
* Alice Boman (born 1987), Swedish singer-songwriter and musician
* Alice Caymmi (born 1990), Brazilian singer
* Alice Cohen (born 1958), American singer-songwriter and musician also known by the stage name Alice Desoto
* Alice Coltrane (1937–2007), American jazz pianist also known as Swamini Turiyasangitananda
* Alice Cooper (born 1948), American male rock musician
* Alice Coote (born 1968), British mezzo-soprano opera singer
* Alice Deejay, Dutch dance music artist
* Alice Longyu Gao (born 1994),Chinese singer, songwriter, DJ, and performance artist
* Alice Glass (born 1988), Canadian vocalist in electronic duo Crystal Castles
* Alice Herz-Sommer (1903–2014), Czech-born Israeli classical pianist and music teacher
* Alice in Chains, American heavy metal band
* Alice Ivy (born 1993), Australian electronic musician and producer
* Alice Levine (1986), British radio DJ and presenter
* Alice Phoebe Lou (born 1993), South African born German singer-songwriter
* Alice Martineau (1972–2003), British pop singer-songwriter
* Alice Merton (born 1993), German-Canadian singer-songwriter
* Alice Nielson (1872–1943), American operatic lyric soprano
* Alice Nine (Japanse: アリス九號.), Japanese visual kei rock band
* Alice Nutter (born 1962), a member of the British music band Chumbawamba
* Alice on the Roof (born 1995), Belgian singer
* Alice Prin (1901–1953), French singer and actress
* Alice Russell (born 1975), British soul singer
* Alice Carter Simmons (1883–1943), American pianist, organist, and music educator
* Alice Smith (born 1977), American R&B, blues, jazz and soul singer-songwriter
* Alice Mary Smith (1839–1884), English composer
* Alice Spooner, keyboardist in English Grime/New Rave band Hadouken!
* Alice Verlet (1873–1934), Belgian operatic coloratura soprano
* Alice Verne-Bredt (1864–1958), British piano teacher, violinist and composer
* Alice Vinette (1894–1989), Canadian composer
* Alice Ivy Wigmore (1895–1982) Australian violinist and philanthropist

Actresses and filmmakers

* Alice Amter