Namewise

Finlay vs Tilly-May

Finlay and Tilly-Maycompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.

Head to head

Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.

  • England and Wales · Girls

    In 2018, Finlay was ranked #4684 and Tilly-May #3518 among girls in England and Wales.

Finlay and Tilly-May over time

Finlay and Tilly-May appear together in 1 published list, across 12 years of shared records. Tilly-May held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Finlay in 0.

The order between them changed and held in one of those lists — a change in that published list, never a claim that one name displaced the other.

Finlay reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Tilly-May in none. Each position is a place inside its own list, so this compares when they peaked and never how high.

Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.

List by list

  • England and Wales · Girls12 shared years, 20032018

    Finlay held the stronger position in 4 of those years, Tilly-May in 6.

    Highest recorded here: Finlay #1325 in 2003, Tilly-May #1220 in 2013.

    The order changed in 2008: Tilly-May moved ahead. In 2007 they stood at #2627 and #3667; by 2008 that had become #3005 and #3005.

    Most recent shared year, 2018: Finlay #4684, Tilly-May #3518.

Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.

Side by side

Side-by-side comparison of Finlay, Tilly-May
FieldFinlayTilly-May
Record typeOfficial statistical record (evidence-only)Official statistical record (evidence-only)
Gender usagemalefemale
MeaningNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
OriginNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
PronunciationNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
Syllables23
Common variants / nicknamesNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
Recorded regional usageGB-ENW, GB-NIR, GB-SCT, IEGB-ENW
Most recent popularity observationRepublic of Ireland · Boys #372 (2025)England and Wales · Girls #4192 (2024)
Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score)Not yet recordedNot yet recorded
Spelling simplicity (demonstration score)88/10070/100
International familiarity (demonstration score)100/10040/100
Data Confidencemediummedium

What the data shows

  • Finlay has 2 syllables, compared with 3 for Tilly-May.
  • Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW.

How each name got here

Finlay

Popularity journey

  1. First recorded1996

    First recorded at #1646 among girls in England and Wales in 1996 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.

    England and Wales · Girls

  2. Highest recorded2024–2024

    Highest recorded position: #11 among boys in Scotland, in 2024 (recorded 2024–2024).

    Scotland · Boys

  3. Most recent2025

    Most recently recorded at #372 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 2025.

    Republic of Ireland · Boys

Tilly-May

Popularity journey

  1. First recorded2003

    First recorded at #3594 among girls in England and Wales in 2003 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.

    England and Wales · Girls

  2. Highest recorded2003–2024

    Highest recorded position: #1220 among girls in England and Wales, in 2013 (recorded 2003–2024).

    England and Wales · Girls

  3. Most recent2024

    Most recently recorded at #4192 among girls in England and Wales, in 2024.

    England and Wales · Girls