Contribute your knowledge to the name Alana

Comments and insights on the name Alana

It is Lovely

PRONOUNCED:A-lah-nah, Ah-Lah-nah
VARIENTS: Alanna, Alannah

Alana is of Hawaiian and Gaelic origin.
Meaning: Fair, beautiful offering; awakening
Pronounced, Ah-Lah-nah.

Personal experiences with the name Alana

My girlfriend is named Alana but got stuck going by "Allie" when no one in the town her family moved to could pronounce it in a non nasally way..

after much debate we named our second daughter alana gray. we chose alana because neither of us new any alanas, and wasnt very popular. we spelled it the simplest way we could think of. our other daughters name is autumn and thought they went well together. her middle name is a combo of my parents names and i thought the two names worked well together alana gray. i am glad we chose it!

My name is Alana, and I'm surprised how much popularity that this page says it's gained in the younger generation! I was born in the 1980's and have only ever met one other Alana, who pronounces it differently (a-LAN-a vs. a-LONN-a.) I spend a lot of time telling people that my name rhymes with "banana," and then answering to a-LONN-a or a-LANE-a or "Alanis" anyway. Sometimes I go by Anna when it feels easier.

My cousin aka one of my favorite people ever is named Alana Michelle. Her name is pronounced like Alayna or Alaina though. I think her name is super cool. She's short (5'2" yet still taller than me), unhealthily thin, pale, has hazel-brown eyes, was born blonde but her hair later turned auburn (currently its dyed pink)

Nicknames for Alana

Lani/Loni
Ali/Aly
Lana,
Lanz,
Lanibear,
Lanza,
Alanita,
Banana,
NaNa,
Aluna,
Al,
Ana,
Lan/Lon
Lan-Lan/Lon-Lon

Meanings and history of the name Alana

Hawaiian and Gaelic origin
Meaning: fair, beautiful offering; weakening

The oldest meaning that I can remember was of Celtic origin and it said that the name Alana meant "comely or fair" and that it was a derivative of the name Helen. Only in the last 15 yerars or so since the name gained in popularity have other meanings come to light. It is not a form of the Hawaian name Lailani. I have had this name for almost 60 years.
I have to disagree with the meaning of Alana as given above, or at least to say I think there are at least two "truer" meanings of the name. As an Alana myself, I've researched the name over the years, and it is a Hawaiian name (meaning "awakening" "fair" and "beautiful") as well as Irish ("child"). Occasionally I come across the possible meaning that it's just a female form of Alan. I guess I don't like that one as much and consider it not the real meaning-- just because it looks like Alan and has an extra "a" on the end does not make Alana originally come from Alan!

Feminine form of ALAN

Famous real-life people named Alana

Alana Hamilton Stewart, actress and former model
Alana Thompson, star of the reality TV series "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo"
Alana Blahoski, Olympic gold medalist in ice hockey (1998)

Alana in song, story & screen

One of Ariel's sisters in Disney's The Little Mermaid is Alana.

"Alana Loves Me" is a song on Canadian singer and guitarist Kim Mitchell's 1986 album "Shaking Like A Human Being."

Alanna is a knight in the Tamora Pierce series.