Ely
Masculine · “eel district”
Ely is given to both — 4,471 boys and 616 girls since 1880. See Ely as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Ely is an English cathedral city named for eels — the Old English eelge, the district of eels.
How old is the name Ely?
Ely was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Ely alive today was born around 2004, making them about 21 years old. About 3,800 people named Ely are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Ely most popular?
Ely peaked in 1882, reaching #540 nationally. Today it ranks #2641, 2,101 places below that high. See the whole 1882 chart.
Ely appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From elge to Ely
The story of Ely
Bede says Ely is named for the great numbers of eels caught in the fens around it, and medieval rents there were paid in eels by the thousand. Separately, Eli is the priest who raises Samuel. Both routes reach American records, where Ely is in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
eel district; my God
Two routes. The English city Ely, from the Old English elge, generally read as 'eel district' — Bede says so. Or a respelling of Eli, from the Hebrew, 'my God' or 'ascent'. Both are genuine and neither dominates for American use.
How the name formed
- elge
- Ely
Related forms: Eli · עלי
Pronouncing Ely
EE-lee
Two syllables, stress on the first. Ely and Eli are homophones.
Nicknames for Ely
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
- 2009159 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #540reached in 1882
- Change vs 2022
- +25.6%49 in 2025, from 39
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.
Ely in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Eli in English — related form
- עלי in Hebrew — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, New York.
Elys among us
people named Ely are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 34,859 born in 2025 was named Ely
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Ely
- #2641
- Ely on the 2025 chart
- #106
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Ely went to 49 boys in 2025, but Eli is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 3,467, which makes it the 106th most-given boys’ name of the year — 2,535 places above the chart.
- Eli3,418
- Ely49
About 1 boy in 493 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 34,859 for Ely itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Ely sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Ely is headed
Ely should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium 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.
Ely beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Ely in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That medieval rents at Ely were paid in eels by the thousand is a first-rate fact.
- Eli is available as a related form with a large record.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- Eli is the commoner spelling for a given name.
- The two origins are entirely unrelated.
- It is very short and can be swallowed by a long surname.
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Ely
Masculine · #2641 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Elys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,800 people named Ely are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Ely?
- Ely is one of 2 recorded spellings. Eli is the more common one — 3,418 births in 2025 against 49 for Ely.
- How popular is the name Ely in 2025?
- Ely ranks #2641 among US boy names in 2025, with 49 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Ely?
- About 1 in every 34,859 US boys born in 2025 was named Ely — 49 in all.
- Will my child share the name Ely with classmates?
- Ely will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Ely
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Keylor#2641 · Kaycee#2641 · Daelyn#2641 · Judge#2641 · Kato#2641 · Herbert#2641 · Giacomo#2641 · Coda#2641
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Ely? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Ely and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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