Neil

Last seen for girls in 1990 at #12,958 · #850 for boys in 2025, 288 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1953 · 1,937 births
Debut · boys
24 births
In top 100 · boys
never
of 146 years
Total births · boys
104,869
since 1880

Neil over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Neil has never cracked the top 100 here.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201985peak #146, 1953boys
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#850288
2024#862280
2023#806305
2022#765330
2021#719360
2020#748324
2019#637422
2018#624427
2017#618422
2016#629425
2015#641414
2014#656397
2013#623394
2012#620391
2011#655358
2010#686342
2009#630396
2008#712327
2007#741305
2006#605398
2005#594380
2004#624338
2003#575384
2002#574381
2001#512443
2000#494462
1999#464490
1998#460489
1997#430526
1996#404579
1995#357678
1994#348704
1993#326784
1992#322791
1991#283918
1990#12,9585#2611,028
1989#8,0379#2511,027
1988#9,2447#240999
1987#9,8256#2211,078
1986#8,5237#2111,152
1985#6,03111#2021,206
1984#9,1446#2051,125
1983#5,45712#1951,226
1982#6,37110#1881,342
1981#5,25413#1881,330
1980#5,54412#1811,348
1979#10,2105#1651,486
1978#5,95810#1591,527
1977#9,6525#1691,429
1976#6,6118#1731,354
1975#5,16111#1741,331
1974#7,6806#1751,323
1973#7,4356#1821,297
1972#7,2926#1851,304
1971#6,6197#1821,422
1970#4,03814#1781,567
1969#4,41811#1641,680
1968#7,0165#2181,049
1967#2001,155
1966#1981,227
1965#1911,321
1964#6,0096#1821,527
1963#2041,448
1962#2141,291
1961#1961,524
1960#1991,446
1959#6,2455#1851,632
1958#4,8907#1741,711
1957#4,5368#1811,676
1956#5,9525#1711,747
1955#5,8285#1591,785
1954#5,7535#1471,959
1953#3,9559#1461,937
1952#4,4837#1471,904
1951#4,3857#1491,755
1950#1561,609
1949#1611,471
1948#4,2057#1651,406
1947#1621,460
1946#1611,343
1945#4,5565#1571,210
1944#1611,140
1943#1621,155
1942#4,6225#1601,101
1941#1611,074
1940#1561,067
1939#3,1458#1521,068
1938#1521,066
1937#3,8006#157969
1936#158913
1935#167858
1934#3,4497#153953
1933#3,1098#149997
1932#3,9016#161934
1931#3,8486#165881
1930#3,6587#174827
1929#3,6827#195696
1928#4,1956#198696
1927#221609
1926#3,8737#225600
1925#4,9735#234563
1924#4,4346#248541
1923#248508
1922#4,4456#255489
1921#4,4646#251497
1920#3,5988#247489
1919#275366
1918#3,5128#285359
1917#270356
1916#4,4175#256375
1915#296289
1914#293232
1913#293184
1912#290151
1911#36358
1910#33754
1909#35743
1908#29355
1907#32842
1906#34237
1905#31142
1904#30641
1903#36028
1902#37328
1901#31432
1900#29250
1899#35526
1898#32435
1897#36726
1896#26247
1895#32931
1894#32230
1893#33028
1892#30936
1891#34025
1890#32229
1889#33228
1888#38723
1887#35621
1886#34824
1885#33226
1884#36923
1883#34623
1882#41619
1881#7816
1880#35024
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Neil was already there! It came in at #350, and was given to 24 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1881, when fewer than 7 boys a year got the name.

See more about Neil
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 12 spots since 2024 (#862#850)
  • 102 spots since 2020 (#748#850)
  • 209 spots since 2015 (#641#850)
  • Biggest jump: 365 spots in 1882 (#781#416)
  • Biggest drop: 431 spots in 1881 (#350#781)
Rise & fade · boys
73 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1953 at #146 (1,937 births)
  • Births halved by 1991, 38 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 1,000 for 146 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: never
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 995
  • Highest: 1 in 995 boys born in 1933 were named Neil (0.10%)
  • Latest: 1 in 5,931 boys born in 2025 (0.02%)
  • Its best rank, #146 in 1953, was only 1 in 1,018 (0.10%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1950s
  • 16.9% of all boys named Neil (17,715) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s217#332 (1889)#402
1890s313#262 (1896)#326
1900s398#292 (1900)#328
1910s2,424#256 (1916)#296
1920s5,688#195 (1929)#232
1930s9,466#149 (1933)#159
1940s12,427#156 (1940)#161
1950s17,715#146 (1953)#162
1960s13,668#164 (1969)#197
1970s14,040#159 (1978)#174
1980s11,833#181 (1980)#208
1990s6,987#261 (1990)#366
2000s3,814#494 (2000)#606
2010s3,992#618 (2017)#639
2020s1,887#719 (2021)#792

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.

Neil in 1985

girls
#6,031
11 births · 1 in 156,439 girls
boys
#202
1,206 births · 1 in 1,533 boys

Top girls' names in 1985

  1. #1Jessica48,345
  2. #2Ashley47,010
  3. #3Jennifer42,661
  4. #4Amanda39,055
  5. #5Sarah24,879
  6. #6Stephanie23,243
  7. #7Nicole22,966
  8. #8Heather21,151
  9. #9Elizabeth20,545
  10. #10Megan20,013
  11. #6,031Neil11

Top boys' names in 1985

  1. #1Michael64,934
  2. #2Christopher59,609
  3. #3Matthew47,075
  4. #4Joshua42,194
  5. #5Daniel38,559
  6. #6David38,522
  7. #7James35,862
  8. #8Robert32,094
  9. #9John31,502
  10. #10Joseph30,222
  11. #202Neil1,206
More about 1985

girls

1,720,828 girls got a published name in 1985; 1 in 156,439 of them was named Neil, which outranked 51.8% of the 12,505 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 18.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Neil
  1. #5,678Yoshiko12
  2. #5,678Zarinah12
  3. #5,678Zoua12
  4. #6,031Neil11
  5. #6,031Aaryn11
  6. #6,031Adella11
  7. #6,031Adi11
  8. #6,457Aaliyah10
  9. #6,457Abbigale10
  10. #6,457Abelina10

Tied with 425 names at #6,031; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1984
Risers
  1. 7,360Kayleigh#8,153#793
  2. 1,675Madison#2,299#624
  3. 1,167Cierra#1,633#466
  4. 1,002Ciera#1,703#701
  5. 787Krystina#1,332#545
Fallers
  1. 1,164Grisel#784#1,948
  2. 893Ciji#963#1,856
  3. 419Falon#914#1,333
  4. 364Alesia#969#1,333
  5. 362Echo#845#1,207

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

boys

1,848,210 boys got a published name in 1985; 1 in 1,533 of them was named Neil, which outranked 97.3% of the 7,586 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 22.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Neil
  1. #199Omar1,216
  2. #200Jerome1,211
  3. #200Theodore1,211
  4. #202Neil1,206
  5. #203Terrance1,188
  6. #204Cole1,185
  7. #205Jaime1,184
Biggest movers since 1984
Risers
  1. 2,425Jaymes#3,270#845
  2. 977Trace#1,933#956
  3. 933Durrell#1,656#723
  4. 793Durell#1,399#606
  5. 562Brandyn#1,444#882
Fallers
  1. 420Anwar#951#1,371
  2. 345Zebulon#976#1,321
  3. 303Tavares#925#1,228
  4. 250Alonso#931#1,181
  5. 228Abdul#1,000#1,228

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

See the top 100 for 1985