Alexander
Meaning and origin
Equivalent to English Alexander. First recorded in Sweden (Scania) in 1201.
Source: Wiktionary, Swedish entry for Alexander (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity in Sweden
Among newborns, Alexander has been falling over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 1998. The figures are for this exact spelling; other spellings of the name are counted on their own.
Years with fewer than two babies (fewer than ten before 2004) show as zero in the chart and as – in the table.
Show the figures
| Year | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1998 | 1,066 |
| 1999 | 1,009 |
| 2000 | 995 |
| 2001 | 936 |
| 2002 | 1,065 |
| 2003 | 1,015 |
| 2004 | 962 |
| 2005 | 941 |
| 2006 | 896 |
| 2007 | 767 |
| 2008 | 838 |
| 2009 | 821 |
| 2010 | 866 |
| 2011 | 717 |
| 2012 | 738 |
| 2013 | 669 |
| 2014 | 612 |
| 2015 | 575 |
| 2016 | 651 |
| 2017 | 673 |
| 2018 | 598 |
| 2019 | 527 |
| 2020 | 493 |
| 2021 | 406 |
| 2022 | 316 |
Everyone registered in Sweden on 31 December with this as the first name they use.
Show the figures
| Year | Women and girls | Men and boys |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | – | 21,227 |
| 2000 | – | 22,246 |
| 2001 | – | 23,336 |
| 2002 | – | 24,507 |
| 2003 | – | 25,651 |
| 2004 | – | 26,689 |
| 2005 | – | 27,648 |
| 2006 | – | 28,648 |
| 2007 | – | 29,472 |
| 2008 | – | 30,465 |
| 2009 | – | 31,370 |
| 2010 | – | 32,285 |
| 2011 | – | 33,021 |
| 2012 | 10 | 33,770 |
| 2013 | 13 | 34,504 |
| 2014 | 12 | 35,181 |
| 2015 | 14 | 35,757 |
| 2016 | 15 | 36,530 |
| 2017 | 25 | 37,288 |
| 2018 | 37 | 37,939 |
| 2019 | 42 | 38,504 |
| 2020 | 42 | 39,052 |
Alexander in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Alexander.Hi! My name is Alexander.
- Alexander ringde och sa att han blir lite sen.Alexander called and said he'll be a bit late.
- Jag ska fika med Alexander i eftermiddag.I'm having coffee with Alexander this afternoon.
- Alexanders mamma är lärare.Alexander's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Alexanders mamma is Alexander's mum.
More names
Questions about Alexander
How do you pronounce Alexander in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Alexander from a native speaker's recording.
What does the name Alexander mean?
Equivalent to English Alexander. First recorded in Sweden (Scania) in 1201.
How popular is Alexander in Sweden?
316 babies were named Alexander in 2022. In 2020, 39,094 people in Sweden had Alexander as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been falling lately and peaked in 1998 in the years SCB covers (1998–2022).
Popularity figures: Statistics Sweden (SCB), name statistics (BE0001) from the Statistical Database, released as open data under CC0. Each spelling is counted as its own name, as SCB does. SCB's open name statistics end with babies named in 2022 and the population on 31 December 2020; SCB stopped producing name statistics in 2024 and now points to the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) for newer figures.
Origins, IPA and recordings: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), via kaikki.org; recordings from Lingua Libre on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA). Lingolib is not affiliated with SCB or Wiktionary. Sources last checked 7 October 2026.