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Ellis

English surname derived from Elijah or Elias or Welsh
"benevolent"
Sophie Kihm
By Sophie Kihm
Updated Mon Jul 14 2025

Ellis Origin and Meaning

The name Ellis is a boy's name of English, Welsh origin meaning "benevolent".

Ellis is a former Old Man Name turned gender-neutral choice for the 21st century. It's one of the less used names in the currently popular El-family.

A popular Welsh name in its own right, sometimes spelled Elis, Ellis is also an English surname derived from Elijah, by way of the Greek Elias.

Ellis Bell was the male pseudonym of Emily Bronte when she wrote Wuthering Heights. Ellis Marsalis is the paterfamilias of the noted jazz family, father of Wynton, Branford and others, and some might associate the name with Ellis Island, through which millions of immigrants entered the United States.

There have been a number of Ellises on the big and small screen -- in The Wire, Grey's Anatomy and No Country for Old Men, among others. As a surname, it's associated with designer Perry, writer Bret Easton and psychologist Havelock.

At one point all-male, Ellis is now a popular name for both boys and girls. Currently there are two baby boys named Ellis for every girl.

# 273 in the US

Ellis Rank in US Top 1000

# 38 on Nameberry

Ellis Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Popularity of the name Ellis

20 Names Similar to Ellis

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Ellis.

Famous People Named Ellis

  • Ellis Paul (born Paul Plissey)
    American singer,songwriter
  • Ellis Charles Wackett
    Australian Air Force commander
  • Ellis Andrew Stones
    Australian landscape architect
  • Ellis Ashmead
    Bartlett, English war correspondant
  • Ellis Lankster
    American football player
  • Ellis James O'Leary (b. 2013)
    son of TV host Samantha Brown and Kevin O'Leary; twin sister Elizabeth Mae
  • Bret Easton Ellis
    American novelist
  • Herbert Douglas 'Doug' Ellis
    English soccer club chairman
  • Ellis Allen
    English journalist and biographer
  • Lindsay Ellis
    media critic

The name Ellis in Pop Culture

  • Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding
    character in film "The Shawshank Redemption"
  • Ellis Jones
    character in film "The Age of Adaline"
  • Ellis Shepherd
    son of Derek and Meredith on TV's "Grey's Anatomy"
  • Ellis
    character in the 2012 movie "Mud"
  • Ellis
    character in Left 4 Dead 2
  • Ellis
    character in TV's Parks and Recreation
  • Ellis Island
    a small island in New York Harbor that famously welcomed immigrants to the United States
  • Ellis Stevens
    character in TV's From

International Variations of the name Ellis

  • Elis
    Welsh

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