Eli
Masculine · “ascent”
Eli is overwhelmingly a boys’ name — 153,495 boys against 1,017 girls since 1880. See Eli as a girl name
Eli belongs to the priest at Shiloh in the Hebrew Bible, the man who raised the boy Samuel — which makes it one of the oldest names still in ordinary use in English. It has been on American birth records without a break since such records began, quietly for most of that time and much more loudly of late. Three letters, two syllables, and nothing in it that needs explaining twice on paper.
How old is the name Eli?
Eli was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Eli is a kid of about 12 — this name's wave is very recent. About 143,000 people named Eli are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Eli most popular?
Eli peaked in 2012, reaching #43 nationally. Today it ranks #104, 61 places below that high. See the whole 2012 chart.
Where it comes from
From עֵלִי (ʿEli) to Eli
The story of Eli
The name comes from the Hebrew Bible, where Eli is the priest at Shiloh who takes in the child Samuel and teaches him to answer when he is called — a story told across the opening chapters of 1 Samuel. It passed into Greek and Latin scripture as Hēli, and reached English through the great wave of Bible translation, then traveled to North America with settlers who preferred Old Testament names to saints' days. Eli Whitney, born in New England in the eighteenth century, is the clearest sign of how at home it already was in early America. Its recent rise has come partly on its own and partly on the back of Elijah, Elias and Elliot, all of which shorten to it.
Meaning
ascent, height — from the Hebrew root meaning 'to go up'
Worth knowing: the Hebrew phrase 'Eli, Eli' in the Gospel accounts of the crucifixion means 'my God', but that is a different Hebrew word that happens to reach English at the same spelling. The name of the priest is the one meaning 'height'.
Cultural footprint
Eli Whitney (b. 1765) — Invented the cotton gin
Eli Manning (b. 1981) — Two-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
How the name formed
- עֵלִיʿEli
- ἩλίHēli
- Heli
- Eli
Related forms: עֵלִי · Elí · Eli · Héli · Eli · Ἡλί
Pronouncing Eli
EE-lye
That is the standard American pronunciation. In Hebrew, Spanish and Portuguese the same spelling is said closer to eh-LEE, so bilingual families sometimes carry both versions comfortably.
Nicknames for Eli
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 20137,952 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #43reached in 2012
- Change vs 2022
- −27.3%3,418 in 2025, from 4,704
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Eli in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- עֵלִי in Hebrew — transliteration
- Elí in Spanish — spelling variant
- Eli in Portuguese — same name
- Héli in French — related form
- Eli in Italian — same name
- Ἡλί in Greek — transliteration
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York. International figures from Statistics Canada. Sources
Elis among us
people named Eli are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 500 born in 2025 was named Eli
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Bryan test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Eli's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Bryan climbed just as high around 1977, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Bryan's path sketches the road Eli is walking now.
Eli is coming down from a big peak (#43 in 2012). This is the stretch of the cycle where a name starts to sound like the decade it ruled.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Eli is headed
Eli is easing off slowly — about 15% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Eli beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Eli in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Short, phonetic and hard to misspell once heard — three letters that fit on any form, screen or jersey.
- Documented in scripture for millennia and in American records continuously, so it reads as neither invented nor dated.
- Works both as a complete given name and as the natural short form of Elijah, Elias and Elliot, which leaves room to change your mind later.
- Recognized across Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese and English, and charts in Canada as well as the US.
- The EE-lye / eh-LEE split is real. Spanish- and Hebrew-speaking relatives may reach for the second one, and you will decide fairly early whether to correct people or let both stand.
- People frequently assume it is short for Elijah and ask for the longer version. If Eli is the whole name, expect that question at doctors' offices and roll calls for years.
- Another Eli in the class is unlikely, but the wider Eli- family — Elijah, Elias, Eliana — is well represented, so the sound will not be unfamiliar to anyone.
- With one syllable and a half, there is no formal gear to shift into. Some parents like that plainness; others miss having a long form for a diploma.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Eli to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Eli? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Eli
Masculine · #104 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Elis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 143,000 people named Eli are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Eli in 2025?
- Eli ranks #104 among US boy names in 2025, with 3,418 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Eli?
- About 1 in every 500 US boys born in 2025 was named Eli — 3,418 in all.
- Will my child share the name Eli with classmates?
- Eli will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Eli
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Colton#103 · Amir#105 · Parker#102 · Dominic#106 · Vincent#107 · Adam#101 · Myles#100 · Xavier#108
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Eli? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Eli and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Or jump into a head-to-head
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration; international figures from national statistics agencies. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle