The first name Louise
A girl’s name from French.
Pronounced /luːˈiːz/ 2 syllables Female
Meaning and origin
French origin
From French Louise, the feminine form of Louis.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
In 2025, 44 girls were named Louise, making it the 816th most popular girls’ name. It peaked in 1996, with 1,309 births (#44).
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Louise with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Louise at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 579 girls born in the United States were named Louise, the 516th most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 1921, when 9,180 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Louise in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Spelled Louise in Danish and French too.
Nicknames and spellings
Other spellings and forms
Famous people named Louise
351 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le BrunFrench portrait painter (1755–1842)
- Louise FletcherAmerican actress (1934–2022)
- Louise MichelFrench author and anarchist (1830-1905)
- Louise BourgeoisFrench-American artist (1911-2010)
- Louise LabéFrench poet of the Renaissance, born in Lyon (1524–1566)
- Louise BrooksAmerican actress (1906–1985)
- Louise BrownFirst in-vitro baby, born 1978
- Louise ErdrichAmerican-Ojibwe poet, novelist, and children's writer (born 1954)
- Louise HayAmerican writer, 1926–2017
- Louise AbbémaFrench painter, sculptor, and designer of the Belle Époque (1853-1927)
- Louise DresserAmerican actress (1878–1965)
- Louise BryantAmerican activist and journalist (1885–1936)
More French girls’ names
Questions
- What does the name Louise mean?
- From French Louise, the feminine form of Louis.
- What is the origin of the name Louise?
- From French Louise, the feminine form of Louis.
- How popular is the name Louise?
- In 2025, 44 girls born in England and Wales were named Louise, ranking 816th. Its peak was 1996, with 1,309 births.
- Is Louise a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a girl's name: 99% of the 338,662 US babies named Louise since 1880 were girls.
- When was Louise most popular?
- 1921 in the United States, when 9,180 babies were named Louise, its highest rank at 22nd.
- How do you pronounce Louise?
- Louise is /luːˈiːz/, 2 syllables.
- What are other spellings of Louise?
- Louisa.