Liam
Top 1000
About Liam
Liam is the top boys' name in the US, holding the Number One spot for the past eight years and also ranking as one of the most popular boys' names around the western world.
Liam originated as a short form of Uilliam, the Irish variation of William. William is an English name from Germanic roots that was brought to Ireland when the British fled England following the Norman Conquest. The Irish began using English names, including William, which led to the development of Uilliam and its short form, Liam.
Internationally, Liam is enjoying great popularity not only in the U.S. and its native Ireland, but in countries as diverse as Italy and Israel, Chile and Croatia. If you're looking for a boys' name that will easily translate across many languages and cultures, you can't do better than Liam.
Irish-born actor Liam Neeson was instrumental in driving Liam up the charts, as was former Oasis member Liam (born William) Gallagher, and, more recently, One Direction member Liam Payne. Celebrities who have chosen Liam for their sons include Tori Spelling, Calista Flockhart, Rod Stewart, Kevin Costner and Craig Ferguson.
Jaunty and richly textured, Liam holds solidly to the title of most popular boys' name starting with the letter L.
Pronounced LEE-UM.
As of October 2026, Liam ranked #1 in US births in 2025 SSA, Nameberry popularity #19.
Editor's take: The name Liam is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "resolute protection".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #2 | 18,484 | 9,622.7 |
| 2015 | #2 | 18,407 | 9,603.3 |
| 2016 | #2 | 18,272 | 9,628.3 |
| 2017 | #1 | 18,865 | 10,192 |
| 2018 | #1 | 19,974 | 10,997.9 |
| 2019 | #1 | 20,622 | 11,493.6 |
| 2020 | #1 | 19,858 | 11,504.7 |
| 2021 | #1 | 20,407 | 11,664.6 |
| 2022 | #1 | 20,563 | 11,777.2 |
| 2023 | #1 | 20,886 | 12,209.9 |
| 2024 | #1 | 22,164 | 12,864.4 |
| 2025 | #1 | 20,818 | 12,188 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Liam.
Liam on lists
Famous Liams
- Liam John Neeson
Irish actor
- Liam Hemsworth
Australian actor
- Liam James Payne
English singer of group One Direction
- Liam Cosgrave
former Taoiseach (Prime Minister of Ireland)
- Liam Fox
British politician; former Secretary of State for Defense
- Liam Brady
Irish footballer
- Liam Padraic Aiken
American actor
- Liam Cunningham
Irish actor
- Liam Dryden
Scottish internet personality, actor, and musician
- William John Paul "Liam" Gallagher
English singer
- Liam James
Canadian actor
- Liam Lynch (born William Patrick Niederst)
American musician and writer
- Liam Aylward
Irish politician
- Liam Dominic Byrne
British politician
- Liam McIntyre
Australian actor
- Liam Christopher O'Brien
American actor
- Liam O'Flaherty
Irish novelist
- William "Liam" Clancy
Irish folk singer
- Liam Mullane Finn
New Zealand singer,songwriter
- Liam Garrigan
English actor
- Liam Howlett
English composer, DJ, and record producer
- Liam Patrick McKenna
Irish singer and TV personality
- Liam Thomas O'Donnell
American actor
- Liam Kyle Sullivan
American comedian, actor, and musician
- Liam Jones
Australian rules footballer
- Liam Waite (born Liam Owen East)
American actor
- Liam Andrew Wright
English film director
- Liam Wilson
American bassist
- Liam Walker Dunaway O'Neill (b. 1980)
son of actress Faye Dunaway
- Liam McAlister Stewart (b. 1994)
son of singer Rod Stewart
- Liam Timothy Costner (b. 1996)
son of actor Kevin Costner and Bridget Rooney
- Liam Flockhart (b. 2001)
son of actors Calista Flockhart and Harrison Ford
- Liam Erixon (b. 2002)
son of singer Jessica Andersson and Jonas Erixon
- Liam Golan (b. 2003)
son of singer Eyal Golan and beauty queen Ilanit Levi
- Liam Aaron McDermott (b. 2007)
son of actors Tori Spelling & Dean McDermott
- Liam Lucca (adopted 2007)
son of singer Tony Lucca
- Liam Knight (b. 2008)
son of actor Wayne Knight
- Liam Allen Peterson (b. 2010)
son of TV personalities Emily McKenzie and Daniel Peterson of "16 and Pregnant"
- Liam James Ferguson (b. 2011)
son of TV personality Craig Ferguson
- Liam Weatherly (b. 2013)
son of actor Michael Weatherly
- Liam Choupo
Moting (b. 2013), son of footballer Eric Maxim Choupo,Moting
- Liam da Silva (b. 2015)
son of footballer Marcelo
- Liam Henri Hartmut
Prince of Nassau (b.2016), son of Prince Félix and Princess Claire of Luxembourg.
- Liam Parker (b. 2016)
son of French pro basketball player Tony Parker
- Liam James Tell (b.2017)
son of personality Lauren Conrad.
- Liam Patrick Heneghan
YouTube gamer
- Liam Charles Antetokounmpo (b. 2020)
son of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Mariah Riddlesprigger
- Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh
Irish rapper who goes by the stage name Mo Chara
Liam in pop culture
- Liam Stewart
character in Alexandra Bracken's series "The Darkest Minds"
- Liam Lupo
character on TV's "Switched at Birth"
- Liam
birth name of Angel, character on TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel"
- Liam Fergus Beircheart Gallagher
character on TV's "Shameless"
- Liam Moore
character on TV's "Crossing Jordan"
- Liam the Leprechaun
character on YouTube show "Annoying Orange"
- Liam Bernal
character in Lisa M. Stasse's series "The Forsaken"
- Liam Dunbar
character on TV's "Teen Wolf"
- Liam Booker
character on MTV's "Faking It"
- Liam Kinney
character in Marissa Meyer's series "The Lunar Chronicles"
- Liam Butcher
character on British soap "EastEnders"
- Liam Jones
brother of Captain Hook on TV's "Once Upon a Time"
- Liam Kosta
character in the game "Mass Effect: Andromeda"
- Liam O' Brien
a character in the game "Assassin's Creed: Rogue"
- Liam de Lioncourt
character in "Monster Prom"
- Liam Cole
character in CBS' Salvation