Baby Names US
Unisex name ★ peaked 2021

Ellison

Meaning A unisex given name transferred from the surname Gender Unisex · 66% girls Rank 2025 #1,067 Trend ↓ Falling 19%

A unisex given name transferred from the surname.

Rank 2025
#1,067
among girls · unchanged vs 2024
Babies in 2025
326
named Ellison · +7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 7,049
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2021
424 babies
All-time total
8,658
#2,355 all-time among girls
First recorded
1881
in Social Security records

Ellison popularity over time

8,658 babies have been named Ellison since 1881, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.060.130.190.2518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – 19 19 2 – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – 39 39 4 – –
1910s 6 166 172 17 +341% #3,309
1920s – 216 216 22 +26% –
1930s – 160 160 16 -26% –
1940s – 187 187 19 +17% –
1950s 5 149 154 15 -18% #6,528
1960s 12 132 144 14 -6% #5,460
1970s 53 102 155 16 +8% #6,682
1980s 71 148 219 22 +41% #5,633
1990s 210 165 375 38 +71% #3,133
2000s 1,102 235 1,337 134 +257% #1,386
2010s 2,687 725 3,412 341 +155% #838
2020s (to 2025) 1,549 520 2,069 345 +1% #839

Where Ellison is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 221 0.14 outside top 500
2027 214 0.13 outside top 500
2028 209 0.13 outside top 500
2029 205 0.13 outside top 500
2030 202 0.13 outside top 500

Where Ellison is most popular

Girls named Ellison per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.155 per 1,000. Strongest in South Carolina, Alabama, and Tennessee.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Ellison born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
South Carolina 97 1.08 +595%
Alabama 52 0.554 +257%
Tennessee 87 0.549 +254%
Kentucky 43 0.503 +224%
Arkansas 18 0.341 +119%
North Carolina 77 0.338 +118%
Georgia 75 0.330 +113%
Wisconsin 33 0.320 +106%
Louisiana 27 0.308 +99%
Indiana 35 0.249 +61%
Oklahoma 18 0.245 +58%
Idaho 7 0.209 +35%
Kansas 12 0.208 +34%
Michigan 37 0.203 +31%
Missouri 22 0.183 +18%
Ohio 42 0.177 +14%
Texas 138 0.172 +11%
Illinois 36 0.157 ≈ national
Mississippi 5 0.107 -31%
Washington 15 0.104 -33%
Iowa 6 0.103 -34%
Florida 43 0.100 -35%
Pennsylvania 22 0.093 -40%
Virginia 14 0.082 -47%
Utah 6 0.072 -54%
California 47 0.056 -64%
New York 19 0.048 -69%
Maryland 5 0.047 -70%
Alaska – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Minnesota – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Ellison

Ellison is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,067 in 2025 with 228 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1881, 8,658 American babies have been named Ellison, about 66% girls and 34% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2021, when 424 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Ellison stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Ellison?

The median living Ellison is about 10 years old; half are between 5 and 18. An estimated 7,900 people named Ellison are alive in the United States today.

median 10 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Ellison year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 228 #1,067 98 #1,679
2024 233 #1,067 73 #2,060
2023 230 #1,076 81 #1,932
2022 239 #1,063 88 #1,831
2021 329 #839 95 #1,713
2020 290 #906 85 #1,779
2019 323 #838 80 #1,871
2018 271 #975 100 #1,628
2017 270 #974 101 #1,597
2016 298 #921 95 #1,666
2015 287 #946 92 #1,695
2014 304 #893 72 #1,984
2013 266 #953 81 #1,785
2012 237 #1,060 43 #2,787
2011 235 #1,051 31 #3,456
2010 196 #1,230 30 #3,560
2009 146 #1,550 31 #3,504
2008 172 #1,386 29 #3,673
2007 150 #1,530 22 #4,410
2006 158 #1,428 32 #3,332
2005 117 #1,693 21 #4,240
2004 96 #1,949 22 #4,049
2003 83 #2,108 19 #4,328
2002 68 #2,360 24 #3,591
2001 58 #2,608 20 #4,014
2000 54 #2,717 15 #4,859
1995 20 #4,894 11 #5,245
1990 7 #10,544 26 #2,572
1985 5 #11,154 9 #4,434
1980 8 #7,610 13 #3,312
1975 8 #6,682 14 #2,797
1970 5 #8,351 15 #2,426
1965 – – 21 #1,736
1960 – – 11 #2,581
1955 – – 7 #3,287
1950 – – 18 #1,760
1945 – – 16 #1,719
1940 – – 21 #1,488
1935 – – 17 #1,726
1930 – – 9 #2,838
1925 – – 22 #1,647
1920 – – 32 #1,283
1915 – – 22 #1,472
1910 – – 8 #1,236
1905 – – 8 #944
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Ellison

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Ellison Onizuka Ellison Onizuka American astronaut and engineer (1946–1986) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Ellison, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Ellison?

The median living Ellison is about 10 years old. Half of all living Ellisons are between 5 and 18 years old.

How many people named Ellison are alive today?

An estimated 7,900 people named Ellison are alive in the United States, based on 8,658 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Ellison mean?

A unisex given name transferred from the surname.

How popular is the name Ellison in 2025?

Ellison ranked #1,067 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 228 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Ellison?

8,658 babies have been named Ellison in the United States since 1881, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Ellison most popular?

Ellison peaked in 2021, when 424 newborns received the name.

Is Ellison a boy or girl name?

Ellison is used for both: about 66% of babies named Ellison have been girls and 34% boys.

Is the name Ellison rising or falling?

Ellison has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Ellison become more popular?

Ellison is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 202 girls named Ellison in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Ellison?

Well-known people named Ellison include Ellison Onizuka (astronaut).

Names like Ellison

Names that sound and feel close to Ellison: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Ellison with similar names → More names starting with E →