Glenys
Feminine · “pure”
Glenys is a Welsh name that looks as if it comes from glen and does not. It is built on glân, the Welsh word for clean or pure, and it shares its ending with a small family of Welsh women's names.
How old is the name Glenys?
Glenys first appears in US birth records in 1911 — 114 years ago. The typical Glenys alive today was born around 1936, making them about 89 years old. About 200 people named Glenys are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Glenys most popular?
Glenys peaked in 1925, reaching #1795 nationally. See the whole 1925 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From glân to Glenys
The story of Glenys
Glenys belongs to the Welsh names that end in -ys: Gladys, from the old Gwladus; Dilys, from dilys, genuine; Nerys, from nêr, a lord; and Glenys, from glân. They were used in Wales and among Welsh families abroad through the twentieth century, and many English speakers assumed a link to the Scottish glen, which comes from Gaelic gleann, a valley. The Welsh word is older and means something quite different: clean, clear and, in church use, holy.
Meaning
pure, holy
From Welsh glân, clean, pure, holy, with the ending of names like Gladys and Dilys. Its resemblance to glen, a Scottish valley, is a coincidence.
How the name formed
- glân
- Glenys
Related forms: Glenys · Glynis
Pronouncing Glenys
GLEN-iss
Stress on the first syllable, as it is said in Wales.
Nicknames for Glenys
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
- 1911
- Most girls named
- 192523 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1795reached in 1925
- Change vs 2001
- +28.6%9 in 2009, from 7
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.
Glenys in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Glenys in Welsh — same name
- Glynis in Welsh — spelling variant
Glenyss among us
people named Glenys are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Glenys sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- It has a clear Welsh meaning and a real tradition behind it.
- It is easy to say once heard.
- It is almost never given now, so it is distinctive.
- People will write Glennis or Glenice.
- Many will assume a link to glen and a Scottish origin.
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Glenys
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Glenyss are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Glenys are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Glenys in 2025?
- Glenys is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Glenys with classmates?
- Glenys will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More G names
The most-given names starting with G, all years combined.
Grace#38 · Gloria#654 · Gladys#3211 · Geraldine#2438 · Gail#8362 · Gertrude#6546 · Georgia#99 · Gina#2076
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Glenys? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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