Allison · Daily fortune

Allison is an English name, pronounced AL-i-sən, with two histories. Behind the Name says that "from the middle of the 20th century this has primarily been used as a variant of the feminine name Alison", but that before then "it was used as an uncommon masculine name, derived from the English and Scottish surname Allison." Today it is a girls' name in the United States, where it ranked #103 for girls in 2025. Alison, Alisson, Allyson and Alyson are variants, and Ali, Allie and Ally are the usual short forms. The meaning of Alison itself was not verified in this pass.

Behind the Name gives two layers. The current use is as a variant of the feminine name Alison, dominant since the middle of the 20th century. The older use, before that, was as an uncommon masculine name derived from the English and Scottish surname Allison. The entry does not give the meaning of Alison or of the surname; the Alison entry was not consulted for this draft, so no gloss is offered. Behind the Name's related-name list connects Allison to the Alice and Adelaide family across many languages (for example French Alix and Alice, Italian Adelaide, Polish Alicja, Irish Ailís), and the Alexander entry lists Allison among the English surname descendants of Alexander, which is a second possible surname origin.

Allison ranked #103 for girls in the United States in 2025 (Social Security Administration). Behind the Name dates the shift to primarily feminine use to the middle of the 20th century.

Allison is a mid-century American classic: soft, three-syllable and friendly, with the easy nickname Allie built in. The double-L spelling gives it a settled, slightly more formal look than Alison, and its surname past lends a faint tailored quality. It reads as familiar rather than fashionable, the kind of name that fits a child and an adult equally well.

Names that share Allison's sound, its Alice family, or its surname-name shape.