Lisle
Masculine · “the island”
Lisle is given to both — 543 boys and 21 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Lisle is an old French spelling of l'isle, the island, carried by the man who wrote the French national anthem. It is a single soft syllable, given almost entirely to boys.
How old is the name Lisle?
Lisle first appears in US birth records in 1885 — 140 years ago. The typical Lisle alive today was born around 1927, making them about 98 years old. About 100 people named Lisle are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Lisle most popular?
Lisle peaked in 1896, reaching #778 nationally. See the whole 1896 chart.
Where it comes from
From l'isle to Lisle
The story of Lisle
Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle, a young army officer in Strasbourg, wrote a war song for the Army of the Rhine in a single night; volunteers from Marseille sang it on their march to Paris, and it became La Marseillaise. The old spelling of Lille was Lisle, and a smooth, strong cotton thread made there was called lisle, so that for generations lisle stockings were an ordinary thing to wear. American families gave Lisle to sons as a surname-name.
Meaning
the island, from French
From Old French l'isle, the island, a place-name and surname. The city of Lille was once spelled Lisle.
How the name formed
- l'isle
- Lisle
Related forms: Lisle · Lyle
Pronouncing Lisle
LYLE
One syllable, said like Lyle; the s is silent.
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
- 1885
- Most boys named
- 192421 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #778reached in 1896
- Change vs 1976
- −16.7%5 in 1979, from 6
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.
Lisle in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Lisle in French — same name
- Lyle in English — related form
Lisles among us
people named Lisle 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
Lisle 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 meaning and a famous namesake.
- It is short and distinctive.
- People will say the s, LEES-ul or LIZ-ul.
- A very few girls have been given it; for them it will read as a boy's name.
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What they receive
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Lisle
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Lisles are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 100 people named Lisle are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Lisle in 2025?
- Lisle is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Lisle with classmates?
- Lisle will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More L names
The most-given names starting with L, all years combined.
Larry#1084 · Lawrence#518 · Louis#249 · Logan#53 · Liam#1 · Lucas#10 · Luke#33 · Leonard#637
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Lisle? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Lisle and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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