Elijah

#7,133 for girls in 2025, 15 births · #7 for boys in 2025, 11,111 births
Given to boys 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
2020 · 13,238 births
Debut · boys
100 births
In top 100 · boys
31 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
380,611
since 1880

Elijah over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201990peak #4, 2020boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#7,13315#711,111
2024#5,02126#811,238
2023#5,96020#511,523
2022#4,37832#512,094
2021#4,71928#412,845
2020#4,35831#413,238
2019#5,79821#513,436
2018#4,23733#713,020
2017#4,81128#813,449
2016#4,99027#913,982
2015#4,85328#1113,710
2014#4,26934#1113,886
2013#4,33633#1113,829
2012#4,95728#1313,914
2011#4,35333#1314,001
2010#3,36048#1813,920
2009#4,10737#2112,846
2008#3,64544#2213,241
2007#3,91840#3012,424
2006#3,91938#2912,055
2005#3,73039#3111,612
2004#2,26477#3111,714
2003#3,18746#3710,665
2002#3,46139#4110,053
2001#3,25642#458,339
2000#4,64925#527,472
1999#3,44336#606,596
1998#2,69150#665,662
1997#3,54732#745,089
1996#3,23736#814,818
1995#3,22035#933,977
1994#4,52122#1332,621
1993#6,62213#1701,882
1992#4,68621#2031,523
1991#5,65916#2221,345
1990#7,30311#2431,139
1989#6,16013#257991
1988#8,3918#266886
1987#7,3539#288746
1986#6,15611#289718
1985#7,5638#299681
1984#10,4225#310631
1983#6,21210#296671
1982#6,8889#280739
1981#8,1287#277750
1980#10,3925#279754
1979#9,0106#290696
1978#7,6497#320548
1977#9,6525#350504
1976#6,0489#450301
1975#491263
1974#472287
1973#537212
1972#551209
1971#587196
1970#596184
1969#659143
1968#680122
1967#644134
1966#626140
1965#672122
1964#618161
1963#640149
1962#583179
1961#562194
1960#580180
1959#575185
1958#532209
1957#522218
1956#533197
1955#477235
1954#5,7535#453254
1953#455248
1952#431263
1951#451223
1950#403282
1949#415267
1948#5,2435#427244
1947#399296
1946#426222
1945#387237
1944#399227
1943#416221
1942#387245
1941#374239
1940#404201
1939#371237
1938#407195
1937#3,8006#382210
1936#365221
1935#374210
1934#378209
1933#386198
1932#365231
1931#400198
1930#378226
1929#4,5705#367243
1928#365255
1927#336290
1926#3,8737#348276
1925#347283
1924#374261
1923#335302
1922#327311
1921#378257
1920#355277
1919#327295
1918#358264
1917#348256
1916#353232
1915#339243
1914#339187
1913#335149
1912#302142
1911#26794
1910#233101
1909#23190
1908#26564
1907#23376
1906#24265
1905#21281
1904#24260
1903#23958
1902#22166
1901#18379
1900#21086
1899#20564
1898#19776
1897#20965
1896#18687
1895#19475
1894#23554
1893#18977
1892#18485
1891#20957
1890#20464
1889#20861
1888#17188
1887#16875
1886#15293
1885#16282
1884#16385
1883#13392
1882#126111
1881#17269
1880#135100
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Elijah was already there! It came in at #135, and was given to 100 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1893–1895, when fewer than 78 boys a year got the name.

See more about Elijah
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 1 spot since 2024 (#8#7)
  • 3 spots since 2020 (#4#7)
  • 4 spots since 2015 (#11#7)
  • Biggest jump: 100 spots in 1977 (#450#350)
  • Biggest drop: 57 spots in 1963 (#583#640)
Rise & fade · boys
140 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 2020 at #4 (13,238 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 10 yrs
  • Top 10: 10 yrs · run 2016–2025
  • Top 100: 31 yrs · run 1995–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 130
  • Highest: 1 in 130 boys born in 2020 were named Elijah (0.77%)
  • Latest: 1 in 154 boys born in 2025 (0.65%)
Era · boys
The 2010s
  • 36.0% of all boys named Elijah (137,147) were born in this decade
  • Comeback: #126 (1882) → #680 (1968) → #4 (2020)
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s856#126 (1882)#159
1890s704#184 (1892)#201
1900s725#183 (1901)#228
1910s1,963#233 (1910)#320
1920s2,755#327 (1922)#353
1930s2,135#365 (1932)#381
1940s2,399#374 (1941)#403
1950s2,314#403 (1950)#483
1960s1,524#562 (1961)#626
1970s3,400#290 (1979)#464
1980s7,567#257 (1989)#284
1990s34,652#60 (1999)#135
2000s110,421#21 (2009)#34
2010s137,147#5 (2019)#11
2020s72,049#4 (2020)#6

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Elijah in 1990

girls
#7,303
11 births · 1 in 172,595 girls
boys
#243
1,139 births · 1 in 1,803 boys

Top girls' names in 1990

  1. #1Jessica46,486
  2. #2Ashley45,561
  3. #3Brittany36,536
  4. #4Amanda34,413
  5. #5Samantha25,868
  6. #6Sarah25,824
  7. #7Stephanie24,864
  8. #8Jennifer22,236
  9. #9Elizabeth20,750
  10. #10Lauren20,506
  11. #7,303Elijah11

Top boys' names in 1990

  1. #1Michael65,321
  2. #2Christopher52,362
  3. #3Matthew44,826
  4. #4Joshua43,237
  5. #5Daniel33,830
  6. #6David33,748
  7. #7Andrew33,673
  8. #8James32,359
  9. #9Justin30,649
  10. #10Joseph30,137
  11. #243Elijah1,139
More about 1990

girls

1,898,547 girls got a published name in 1990; 1 in 172,595 of them was named Elijah, which outranked 52.1% of the 15,234 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 16.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Elijah
  1. #6,867Yoko12
  2. #6,867Zia12
  3. #6,867Zoie12
  4. #7,303Elijah11
  5. #7,303Abeer11
  6. #7,303Adasha11
  7. #7,303Adelita11
  8. #7,880Aarin10
  9. #7,880Abbigayle10
  10. #7,880Abegail10

Tied with 576 names at #7,303; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1989
Risers
  1. 5,592Alannah#6,531#939
  2. 1,178Symone#1,998#820
  3. 869Shelbi#1,750#881
  4. 831Latifah#1,532#701
  5. 828Skyler#1,564#736
Fallers
  1. 2,554Elizabet#524#3,078
  2. 1,572Katherin#717#2,289
  3. 652Stephani#390#1,042
  4. 504Ashanti#893#1,397
  5. 416Audrianna#759#1,175

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

2,054,038 boys got a published name in 1990; 1 in 1,803 of them was named Elijah, which outranked 97.4% of the 9,493 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 19.5% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Elijah
  1. #240Collin1,169
  2. #241Malcolm1,158
  3. #242Wayne1,148
  4. #243Elijah1,139
  5. #244Abraham1,135
  6. #245Colby1,129
  7. #246Darrell1,128
Biggest movers since 1989
Risers
  1. 3,636Tevin#4,017#381
  2. 3,283Keenen#4,271#988
  3. 1,325Male#2,027#702
  4. 1,032Denzel#1,476#444
  5. 598Kevon#1,476#878
Fallers
  1. 1,130Kiara#956#2,086
  2. 916Rachel#993#1,909
  3. 855Nicole#985#1,840
  4. 746Tiffany#956#1,702
  5. 681Sarah#819#1,500

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1990