Lily is a girl name with a modern feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Lily means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Lily across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Lily has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Lily is a girl name of Latin origin meaning “the lily flower”. a symbol of purity.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 189,789 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 72,910 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 5,573 births |
| Northern Ireland since 1997 | 2,228 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 6,580 births |
| New Zealand top 100, since 1954 | 4,517 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Lily per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 2011 (8,199/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2011 (4,764/yr) · Ireland peaked in 2011 (496/yr) · Scotland peaked in 2011 (491/yr) · Northern Ireland peaked in 2011 (170/yr).
Lily has been one of the most popular baby names in the United States. It was most common in 2011, when it ranked #64 nationally (given to 14,120 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 2010s.
Lillie · Lulu · Lyla · Lola · Lula · Lilly · Laila · Lyle
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