How to say it
AN · na · belle
/ˈæn.ə.bɛl/
Feminine
Annabelle
Grace and beauty
What it means
Usually read as Anna ('grace') joined to belle ('beautiful'), though it may descend from the medieval Amabel, 'lovable.'
Annabelle reads as a tidy blend of Anna, 'grace,' and the French belle, 'beautiful,' though it likely grew out of the medieval name Amabel, 'lovable.' It has been used in Scotland since the Middle Ages as Annabella. Poe's haunting 'Annabel Lee' gave it a literary glow; the Annabelle horror doll is a more recent and easily ignored footnote. Anna, Belle, and Annie all live inside it.
Popularity over time
peaked at #57 in 2014, currently #343 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Nickname
Anna, Belle, and Annie all fall out of it.
- Spelling
Annabelle, Annabel, and Annabella are all current; the sweet meaning far outweighs the horror-doll association.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Annabel Lee the lost love of Edgar Allan Poe's final poem
Spelling variants
- Annabel
- Anabelle
- Annabella
Names with the same feeling
See Annabelle from another angle
By meaning
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