Willis is a boy name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Willis means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Willis across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Willis has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Willis is a boy name of Germanic origin meaning “resolute protector”. A patronymic surname derived from William.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 53,154 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 246 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 3 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 Willis per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1924 (1,276/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2012 (23/yr) · Scotland peaked in 2016 (3/yr).
Willis has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1924, when it ranked #312 nationally (given to 1,276 babies that year).
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