Last updated: March 2026

Character Name

Annie

Meaning — Annie is a diminutive of Anne, itself the English form of the Latin Anna, from the Hebrew Channah meaning "grace" or "favour". The name has been in continuous use across Europe since the early Christian period. In American culture it is indelibly associated with the red-headed orphan protagonist of the musical "Annie", based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie".·Hebrew origin·Female·AN-ee

Annie Annie projects irrepressible optimism and a scrappy resilience that suits underdog protagonists. The name is warm and unpretentious, carrying a homespun American quality alongside its deeper Hebrew roots of grace. Characters named Annie are often fiercely loyal, emotionally open, and possessed of a courage that comes from having little left to lose.

Best genres for Annie

Contemporary FictionYoung AdultHistorical FictionLiterary Fiction

Famous characters named Annie

Annie

Annie (musical) Thomas Meehan

A plucky red-headed Depression-era orphan who maintains her optimism and eventually finds a home with Daddy Warbucks.


Variations & nicknames

AnnieAnneAnnaAnni

Pairs well with

Annie SullivanAnnie LarkinAnnie McGrathAnnie HollandAnnie Webb

Writing a character named Annie?

Hearth's distraction-free editor helps you develop characters and write every day.

Start writing free

Related names


More Hebrew names

Bethany

From the Hebrew Beit Anya, meaning "house of figs" or possibly "house of affliction" or "house of the poor" — from beit ("house") and te'ena ("fig tree") or aniya ("affliction"). Bethany was the village near Jerusalem where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. The place name was adopted as a given name by English Christians in the 20th century, particularly in America, and carries a gentle biblical warmth.

Elliot

An English surname and given name derived from the medieval personal name Eliott, itself a diminutive of Elias, the Latin and Greek form of the Hebrew Elijah, meaning "my God is Yahweh." The name passed from a Hebrew prophetic name into a Scottish and English family surname before returning to use as a given name. It can be spelled Elliot or Elliott.

Zephira

From the Hebrew "Tzfirah" meaning morning, dawn, or daybreak — the joyful light that breaks the darkness. The name evokes the fresh, luminous quality of the earliest hours of day and appears in Jewish liturgical contexts as a symbol of redemption and new beginning after the darkness of exile.

Daniel

Daniel is a Hebrew masculine name meaning "God is my judge," composed of the elements din (to judge) and El (God). It is the name of the biblical prophet Daniel, whose Book of Daniel in the Hebrew scriptures recounts his survival in the lion's den and his prophetic visions. The name is widely used in Slavic countries including Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Russia.

Seth

From the Hebrew Shet, meaning "appointed" or "placed" — from the root shith, "to put" or "to set." In Genesis, Seth was the third son of Adam and Eve, born after the death of Abel, and regarded as the ancestor of all humanity after the flood through his descendant Noah. The name has been in English use since the Reformation, when Old Testament names became fashionable among Puritans, and has remained in continuous quiet use.

Susan

An English form of Susanna, from the Hebrew Shoshannah, meaning "lily" or "rose" (the exact flower depends on interpretation of the underlying root shwshan). Susanna appears in the Old Testament Apocrypha as the heroine who is falsely accused and vindicated through Daniel's wisdom. The name has been in English use since the 16th century and peaked in extraordinary popularity in the 1950s and 1960s in the United States and United Kingdom.


Explore more