Sandra
Sandra was the 1210th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 188 babies. Its best year was 1947, when it ranked 5th with 34,779 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 380 places. More babies were named Sandra in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Meaning short form of Alexandra · Italian, Greek
Say it SAN-druh /ˈsændɹə/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,210 girls, down 107 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 188girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 194734,779 babies
- Total since 1880
- 878,223babies recorded
What does the name Sandra mean?
Sandra is a short form of Alessandra and Alexandra, and less often of Cassandra, as Wiktionary notes; it began in Italy and spread in the 20th century. Alexandra is the feminine of Alexander, from Greek alexein 'to defend' and anēr 'man'. George Meredith's novel Sandra Belloni (1886) helped introduce it to English speakers, and it was very common in the US in the 1940s.
ἀλέξειν (alexein) (Ancient Greek, “to defend”)ἀνήρ (anēr) (Ancient Greek, “man”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Alexandra, Cassandra, Sandy, Sondra, Saundra.
See also: Greek names, names that mean protector.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Sandra', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Alexander', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Sandra
The usual nicknames for Sandra are Sandy. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Sandra in the last five years, 25 were named Sandy, against 27 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy · also for Alexander, Alexandra, Cassandra | Traditional | #3,020 | 292 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Sandras go by each one.
Sandra popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 2,692 since 1933.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,210 | 188 |
| 2020 | #1,103 | 222 |
| 2010 | #515 | 581 |
| 2000 | #257 | 1,268 |
| 1990 | #134 | 2,343 |
| 1980 | #80 | 4,002 |
| 1970 | #27 | 11,246 |
| 1960 | #11 | 24,572 |
| 1950 | #8 | 28,896 |
| 1940 | #10 | 16,153 |
| 1930 | #392 | 298 |
| 1920 | #689 | 112 |
| 1910 | #1,752 | 9 |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Sandra, counting every spelling?
Sandra has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #1,153 for girls in 2025, against #1,210 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Sandra?
188 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Sandra (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Sandra born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 45 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Sandra.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Sandra?
About 645,000 people born in the US named Sandra are alive today, with a median age of 69; half are between 60 and 77. That makes Sandra a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Sandra by state
How common Sandra was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Alabama (2.9×), Kentucky (1.8×), Illinois (1.6×). In 23 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Sandra: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Sandra, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Sandra · Sibling names for Sandra
Sandra is also a nickname for Alexandra and Alessandra.
Questions about the name Sandra
What does Sandra mean?
Sandra means “short form of Alexandra” (Italian, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Sandra?
Sandra was the 1210th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 188 babies. Its best year was 1947, when it ranked 5th with 34,779 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 380 places. More babies were named Sandra in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Is Sandra a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Sandra in the US.
Where is Sandra most popular?
In 2021–2025, Sandra was most common in Alabama (0.41 per 1,000 girls), followed by Kentucky and Illinois.