Eli
2025 SSA
2025 SSA
About Eli
With its sharp, succinct sounds and cool, laidback style, Eli is a popular choice among parents today. Compact and punchy, it is a Biblical name with plenty of charm.
Eli for boys#104 US
Derived from the Hebrew ’aly, the name Eli means "high" or "ascended." In the Old Testament, Eli was a high priest of the Israelites, who trained and gave guidance to the prophet Samuel.
While the Biblical Eli suffered an unhappy end due to his sons’ misdeeds, his name hasn’t shared the same fate. Used since the 17th century, Eli has never been out of the US Top 1000. It has featured in the Top 100 for the last decade, and is currently popular in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and The Netherlands too.
Eli is also used as a shortened form of Elijah, Elias, Eliezer, or even Elliot and in some Scandinavian countries, is it used as a feminine name, most often as a nickname for Elisabet or Elin. With its unisex potential and its longer forms ranking highly, Eli might feel more popular than it actually is.
Notable namesakes include Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin, Eli Long, a Civil War general, and Eli Roth, a film director, screenwriter, and actor. Enjoyed by the general public and celebrities alike, Eli has been chosen by CNN anchor Campbell Brown, SNL alum Rachel Dratch, and actor Kevin Weisman.
Spirited but solid, no-fuss Eli is given to over 4000 boys each year, so you wouldn’t be alone in loving the name. If you don’t want your baby to have share however, you could consider other Biblical E names such as Eben, Elim, Enosh, or Eran, or perhaps other 3 letter gems, like Ira, Ari, Jem, Nye, or Ivo.
Eli for girls#4099 US
Eli is more often considered a Biblical classic for boys, with the name ranking in the Top 100 alongside Biblical choices for boys, like Elias, Elijah and Levi. Despite this, nearly 50 girls in the US were still called Eli last years. While some parents might have been following in the footsteps of those naming their daughters James, it could also be a spelling twist on familiar Ellie, or a short form of the Scandinavian names, Elisabet and Elin. Either way, with its similarity to Ellis, Ari, Elizabeth, Evie, Ivy, Riley, and Eden, there could be scope for Eli to be seen as a gender neutral option.
Pronounced EE-ly.
As of October 2026, Eli ranked #104 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #43 in 2013, Nameberry popularity #161.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank · boys | Births · boys | US rank · girls | Births · girls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #49 | 7,508 | — | 0 |
| 2015 | #53 | 7,158 | — | 0 |
| 2016 | #50 | 7,129 | #4,368 | 33 |
| 2017 | #54 | 6,636 | — | 0 |
| 2018 | #57 | 6,091 | #3,872 | 38 |
| 2019 | #62 | 5,535 | #4,273 | 33 |
| 2020 | #60 | 5,278 | #4,576 | 29 |
| 2021 | #64 | 4,910 | #4,648 | 29 |
| 2022 | #69 | 4,702 | #3,720 | 41 |
| 2023 | #79 | 4,106 | #4,675 | 29 |
| 2024 | #92 | 3,723 | #3,515 | 44 |
| 2025 | #104 | 3,418 | #4,099 | 35 |
World rankings
Eli for boys
Eli for girls
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Eli on lists
Famous Elis
- Elisha Nelson "Eli" ManningBoy
American NFL football player; brother of football players Peyton and Cooper Manning
- Eli Raphael RothBoy
American actor and director
- Eli WhitneyBoy
American inventor
- Eli Herschel WallachBoy
American actor
- Eli LongBoy
American Civil War general
- Eli Charles Daniel ShortridgeBoy
Americna politician; 3rd governor of North Dakota, USA
- Eli Metcalfe BruceBoy
American Confederate Congressman
- Eli Jones HenkleBoy
U.S. Congressman from Maryland
- Eli ThayerBoy
U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts
- Eli May SaulsburyBoy
U.S. Senator from Delaware
- Elijah "Eli" Levi DaleBoy
YouTuber from The Dale Tribe family vloggers
- Eli James Vonnegut (b. 1980)Boy
son of Mark Vonnegut; grandson of novelist Kurt Vonnegut
- Eli Alistair Stephens (b. 2007)Boy
son of actors Toby Stephens and Anna,Louise Plowman
- Eli James Senor (b. 2007)Boy
son of TV journalist Campbell Brown and Daniel Samuel Senor
- Eli Samuel Weisman (b. 2008)Boy
son of actor Kevin Weisman
- Eli DavidBoy
Lloyd, son of actor Gareth David,Lloyd
- Eli Benjamin Wahl (b. 2010)Boy
son of comedienne Rachel Dratch and John Wahl
- Eli Christopher Ivery (b. 2016)Boy
son of actress Ellen Pompeo and Chris Ivery
Eli in pop culture
- Eli GoldsworthyBoy
character on TV's "Degrassi: The Next Generation"
- Eli SammlerBoy
character on TV's "Once and Again"
- Eli LloydBoy
nurse on TV's "Grey's Anatomy"
- Eli CottonmouthBoy
character in movie "Dog Days of Summer"
- EliBoy
character on TV's "Xena: Warrior Princess"
- EliBoy
character in "Not a Drop to Drink" by Mindy McGinnis
- Eli "Weevil" NavarroBoy
character on TV's "Veronica Mars"
- Eli DavidBoy
father of Ziva David on TV's "NCIS"
- EliBoy
song by Bosnian Rainbows
- Eli StoneBoy
TV Show
- Eli LokerBoy
character on TV's 'Lie To Me'
- Eli YanakakisBoy
main protagonist in the Compound novels
- Elijah Leslie "Eli" PepperjackBoy
character in the Netflix series "Trollhunters"
- Eli CashBoy
a character in The Royal Tenenbaums
- Eli MoonBoy
character in the anime/manga "Cardcaptors"