Loki
Masculine
Loki is given to both — 2,006 boys and 95 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Loki is the Norse trickster, and his name has never been explained — the god who causes most of the trouble in the myths keeps his own meaning to himself.
How old is the name Loki?
Loki first appears in US birth records in 1996 — 29 years ago. The typical Loki is a kid of about 8 — this name's wave is very recent. About 2,000 people named Loki are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Loki most popular?
Loki peaked in 2021, reaching #1230 nationally. Today it ranks #1852, 622 places below that high. See the whole 2021 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Loki
Loki fathers the wolf Fenrir, the world-serpent and Hel; he engineers Baldr's death and is bound beneath a serpent's venom until Ragnarök, when he leads the giants against the gods. He is not a god of mischief so much as the mechanism by which the myths move. The name appears in American records rising from 2011.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
The origin of Loki is genuinely unrecovered. Proposals include a Germanic root meaning 'to close' or 'to end', a word for a knot or tangle, and a connection to the Old Norse logi, 'flame' — though logi is a separate figure in the myths. Honest sources say the meaning is unknown.
Pronouncing Loki
LOH-kee
Two syllables, stress on the first. Old Norse says it the same way.
Nicknames for Loki
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
- 1996
- Most boys named
- 2021156 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1230reached in 2021
- Change vs 2024
- −9.6%85 in 2025, from 94
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.
Loki in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Loki in Old Norse — same name
- Loki in Icelandic — same name
- Lokey in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Ohio, Texas.
Lokis among us
people named Loki are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 20,095 born in 2025 was named Loki
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 Lavelle test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Loki's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Lavelle climbed just as high around 1972, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Lavelle's path sketches the road Loki is walking now.
Loki 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 Loki is headed
Loki is easing off slowly — about 15% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
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.
Loki beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Loki in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One of the central figures of Norse mythology carries it.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- That the meaning is unrecovered is itself a genuinely interesting fact.
- The meaning is genuinely unknown, and honest sources say so.
- Loki causes the death of Baldr and fights against the gods at the end.
- A film franchise carries a very strong association.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Loki to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Loki
Masculine · #1852 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Lokis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,000 people named Loki are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Loki in 2025?
- Loki ranks #1852 among US boy names in 2025, with 85 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Loki?
- About 1 in every 20,095 US boys born in 2025 was named Loki — 85 in all.
- Will my child share the name Loki with classmates?
- Loki will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Loki
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Aston#1852 · Orin#1852 · Sammy#1852 · Kyrin#1852 · Reggie#1852 · Richie#1852 · Riyan#1852 · Ayub#1852
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Loki? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Loki and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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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. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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