# Ely (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/ely/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys and girls |
| Origin | English |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /iːli/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 5,087 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 4,471 / 616 (12% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 161, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Inherited from Middle English Ely, from Old English Ēlīġ, of uncertain origin.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 18 | 6,940 |
| 2012 | 23 | 5,762 |
| 2013 | 19 | 6,547 |
| 2014 | 25 | 5,357 |
| 2015 | 26 | 5,174 |
| 2016 | 15 | 7,713 |
| 2017 | 28 | 4,846 |
| 2018 | 26 | 5,055 |
| 2019 | 27 | 4,949 |
| 2020 | 16 | 7,017 |
| 2021 | 23 | 5,454 |
| 2022 | 30 | 4,619 |
| 2023 | 28 | 4,788 |
| 2024 | 29 | 4,696 |
| 2025 | 16 | 6,925 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 150 | 1,181 |
| 2012 | 132 | 1,305 |
| 2013 | 123 | 1,373 |
| 2014 | 104 | 1,540 |
| 2015 | 109 | 1,516 |
| 2016 | 105 | 1,567 |
| 2017 | 73 | 1,961 |
| 2018 | 75 | 1,964 |
| 2019 | 71 | 2,051 |
| 2020 | 48 | 2,631 |
| 2021 | 48 | 2,663 |
| 2022 | 39 | 3,115 |
| 2023 | 46 | 2,777 |
| 2024 | 40 | 3,064 |
| 2025 | 49 | 2,653 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 8 | 2,390 |
| 2012 | 10 | 2,117 |
| 2013 | 3 | 4,685 |
| 2014 | 5 | 3,362 |
| 2015 | 6 | 3,004 |
| 2016 | 8 | 2,556 |
| 2017 | 10 | 2,172 |
| 2018 | 4 | 3,959 |
| 2019 | 4 | 3,937 |
| 2020 | 9 | 2,228 |
| 2021 | 3 | 4,789 |
| 2022 | 9 | 2,320 |
| 2023 | 3 | 4,991 |
| 2024 | 8 | 2,671 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5,137 |

## People named Ely

- Ely do Amparo, Brazilian footballer (1921–1991)
- Alfred Ely Beach, American businessman (1826–1896)
- Ely Culbertson, American contract bridge entrepreneur (1891–1955)
- Ely Pouget, American actress and model
- Ely Jacques Kahn, American architect (1884–1972)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.