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How popular is the name Eleanor?

Births per year, rank history and how many Eleanors are alive today.

Eleanor (female) is currently the 67th most popular girls' name in England and Wales, with 672 babies given the name in 2024. The name peaked in 1997, when 2,747 babies were given the name, the 20th most popular that year. Eleanor's popularity is double-peaked: popular in the early 1900s, having dropped out of the top 100 in between, and stronger still at its peak in the 1990s. Numbers have been falling in recent years. At least 45,000 babies have been named Eleanor in England and Wales since 1904. Figures before 1996 are estimates. Common short forms of Eleanor include Ella, Ellie and Nellie.

The Eleanor you are most likely to meet is around 29 years old. Half of all Eleanors born in England and Wales are between 20 and 42, and there are at least 73,000 of them alive today. If you walk into a room of 100 females, there's roughly a 21% chance that at least one of them will be called Eleanor.

How many babies are named Eleanor each year?

01k2k1920194019601980200020201904: ~1,331 estimated (973-1,690)1914: ~857 estimated (618-1,096)1924: ~460 estimated (350-571)1984: ~383 estimated (293-473)1994: ~2,001 estimated (1,396-2,606)1996: 2,5551997: 2,7471998: 2,7241999: 2,4852000: 2,0802001: 1,9402002: 1,9422003: 1,8382004: 1,6832005: 1,3282006: 1,3882007: 1,2352008: 1,1512009: 1,0872010: 9952011: 1,0492012: 9892013: 1,0392014: 1,0492015: 1,1052016: 1,1472017: 1,0272018: 9852019: 9712020: 9002021: 9152022: 7882023: 7622024: 672estimatedactual

Where does Eleanor rank among girls' names?

12550751001920194019601980200020201904: ranked 521914: ranked 671924: ranked 891984: ranked 761994: ranked 321996: ranked 221997: ranked 201998: ranked 191999: ranked 182000: ranked 252001: ranked 272002: ranked 262003: ranked 292004: ranked 292005: ranked 432006: ranked 422007: ranked 492008: ranked 542009: ranked 562010: ranked 612011: ranked 592012: ranked 632013: ranked 572014: ranked 602015: ranked 542016: ranked 472017: ranked 542018: ranked 512019: ranked 522020: ranked 532021: ranked 552022: ranked 622023: ranked 582024: ranked 67

Where this data comes from

Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.

One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.

Common questions

When was the name Eleanor most popular?

Eleanor peaked in 1997, when 2,747 babies in England and Wales were given the name.

How many people are called Eleanor?

At least 73,000 people named Eleanor born in England and Wales are alive today.

How old is the typical Eleanor?

Most living Eleanors are between 20 and 42; the most common age is about 29.

Is Eleanor becoming more or less popular?

Reviving: it has returned to the top 100 after time away.





How popular is the name Eleanor?


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