Gillian

femaleStatistical record

What official birth registration shows about Gillian: which national registrars published it, in which years, and how its recorded position changed.

No researched meaning, origin or pronunciation yet — what that means.

Gillian: Recorded since 1954, it reached #27 in 1977, and it stood at #3,695 in 2024.

4registrars recorded it
95times a registrar ranked it
71years from first to last
#27highest recorded position
22groupings it qualifies for

What stands out in Gillian's record

Held a top-100 place for 41 years running. Names by top-100 run

Region

Falling

among girls in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Girls rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#703
1997	#874
1998	#955
1999	#1060
2000	#1095
2001	#1359
2002	#1530
2003	#1552
2004	#1617
2005	#2084
2006	#2320
2007	#4294
2008	#3860
2009	#5556
2010	#5707
2011	#5785
2012	#4171
2013	#3536
2014	#5691
2015	#4736
2016	#4096
2017	#2925
2019	#4001
2021	#3961
2023	#4709
2024	#3695

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

FallingEngland and Wales · Girls

Recorded in official data among girls in Republic of Ireland in 49 of the 60 years from 1964 to 2023.

In 2023: #856 among girls in Republic of Ireland, #4709 among girls in England and Wales.

Official data from 4 national registrars across 4 regions, 1954–2024 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1954
First recorded at #64 among girls in New Zealand in 1954 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
New Zealand · Girls
Highest recorded1964–2023
Highest recorded position: #27 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 1977 (recorded 1964–2023).
Republic of Ireland · Girls
Most recent2024
Most recently recorded at #3695 among girls in England and Wales, in 2024.
England and Wales · Girls

Gillian appears in 4 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Republic of Ireland · Girls, with 49 ranked years and 5,687 births registered; the earliest is New Zealand · Girls, from 1954.

Gillian across 4 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Gillian's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Republic of Ireland · Girls	#107 (1964)	#27 (1977)	#856 (2023)	49 of 60	5,687 (1964–2023)	306 (1978)
England and Wales · Girls	#703 (1996)	#703 (1996)	#3695 (2024)	26 of 29	257 (1996–2024)	33 (1996)
New Zealand · Girls	#64 (1954)	#60 (1956)	#88 (1967)	14 of 14	1,388 (1954–1967)	127 (1962)
Northern Ireland · Girls	#172 (1997)	#172 (1997)	#331 (2003)	6 of 7	28 (1997–2003)	11 (1997)

Gillian by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Gillian in Republic of Ireland · Girls, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960s	470	6 of 10	78
1970sbusiest	2,480	10 of 10	248
1980s	1,917	10 of 10	192
1990s	665	10 of 10	67
2000s	143	10 of 10	14
2010s	9	2 of 10	5
2020s	3	1 of 10	3

Across Republic of Ireland · Girls, the 1970s were its busiest decade, averaging 248 births a year.

Its sharpest single-year move came between 1970 and 1971, when recorded births rose by 93, from 128 to 221.

See the names Republic of Irelandhas recorded the most births with →

Gillian appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

Popularity data

Official popularity data is available for 4 regions, from 1954 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #27 in Republic of Ireland in 1977.

Gillian's recorded popularity observations by year, region and administrative category, including rank, registered births, source confidence and when each region's data was last reviewed.
Year	Region	Category	Rank	Births registered	Confidence	Status
2024	England and Wales	female	#3695	6	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	female	#4709	4	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	female	#3961	5	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	female	#4001	5	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	female	#2925	8	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	female	#4096	5	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	female	#4736	4	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	female	#5691	3	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	female	#3536	6	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	female	#4171	5	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	female	#5785	3	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	female	#5707	3	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	female	#5556	3	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	female	#3860	5	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	female	#4294	4	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	female	#2320	9	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	female	#2084	10	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	female	#1617	13	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	female	#1552	13	High	Verified
2002	England and Wales	female	#1530	12	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	female	#1359	14	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	female	#1095	18	High	Verified
1999	England and Wales	female	#1060	19	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	female	#955	22	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	female	#874	25	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	female	#703	33	High	Verified
1967	New Zealand	female	#88	78	High	Verified
1966	New Zealand	female	#92	70	High	Verified
1965	New Zealand	female	#94	68	High	Verified
1964	New Zealand	female	#93	75	High	Verified
1963	New Zealand	female	#80	98	High	Verified
1962	New Zealand	female	#61	127	High	Verified
1961	New Zealand	female	#64	123	High	Verified
1960	New Zealand	female	#65	114	High	Verified
1959	New Zealand	female	#61	120	High	Verified
1958	New Zealand	female	#60	118	High	Verified
1957	New Zealand	female	#67	102	High	Verified
1956	New Zealand	female	#60	105	High	Verified
1955	New Zealand	female	#65	99	High	Verified
1954	New Zealand	female	#64	91	High	Verified
2003	Northern Ireland	female	#331	3	High	Verified
2001	Northern Ireland	female	#293	4	High	Verified
2000	Northern Ireland	female	#282	4	High	Verified
1999	Northern Ireland	female	#344	3	High	Verified
1998	Northern Ireland	female	#351	3	High	Verified
1997	Northern Ireland	female	#172	11	High	Verified
2023	Republic of Ireland	female	#856	3	High	Verified
2015	Republic of Ireland	female	#751	4	High	Verified
2010	Republic of Ireland	female	#663	5	High	Verified
2009	Republic of Ireland	female	#439	10	High	Verified
2008	Republic of Ireland	female	#311	16	High	Verified
2007	Republic of Ireland	female	#431	9	High	Verified
2006	Republic of Ireland	female	#431	8	High	Verified
2005	Republic of Ireland	female	#300	12	High	Verified
2004	Republic of Ireland	female	#317	10	High	Verified
2003	Republic of Ireland	female	#279	12	High	Verified
2002	Republic of Ireland	female	#197	19	High	Verified
2001	Republic of Ireland	female	#187	21	High	Verified
2000	Republic of Ireland	female	#151	26	High	Verified
1999	Republic of Ireland	female	#136	28	High	Verified
1998	Republic of Ireland	female	#173	20	High	Verified
1997	Republic of Ireland	female	#127	41	High	Verified
1996	Republic of Ireland	female	#80	64	High	Verified
1995	Republic of Ireland	female	#111	50	High	Verified
1994	Republic of Ireland	female	#71	77	High	Verified
1993	Republic of Ireland	female	#87	69	High	Verified
1992	Republic of Ireland	female	#69	90	High	Verified
1991	Republic of Ireland	female	#55	117	High	Verified
1990	Republic of Ireland	female	#60	109	High	Verified
1989	Republic of Ireland	female	#44	144	High	Verified
1988	Republic of Ireland	female	#44	152	High	Verified
1987	Republic of Ireland	female	#43	164	High	Verified
1986	Republic of Ireland	female	#43	180	High	Verified
1985	Republic of Ireland	female	#49	150	High	Verified
1984	Republic of Ireland	female	#39	204	High	Verified
1983	Republic of Ireland	female	#41	207	High	Verified
1982	Republic of Ireland	female	#39	232	High	Verified
1981	Republic of Ireland	female	#40	227	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	female	#41	257	High	Verified
1979	Republic of Ireland	female	#31	293	High	Verified
1978	Republic of Ireland	female	#28	306	High	Verified
1977	Republic of Ireland	female	#27	297	High	Verified
1976	Republic of Ireland	female	#33	267	High	Verified
1975	Republic of Ireland	female	#36	227	High	Verified
1974	Republic of Ireland	female	#36	241	High	Verified
1973	Republic of Ireland	female	#31	261	High	Verified
1972	Republic of Ireland	female	#34	239	High	Verified
1971	Republic of Ireland	female	#36	221	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	female	#65	128	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	female	#73	105	High	Verified
1968	Republic of Ireland	female	#67	107	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	female	#85	82	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	female	#102	62	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	female	#106	59	High	Verified
1964	Republic of Ireland	female	#107	55	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
New Zealand hub — collected by NZ Department of Internal Affairs
Northern Ireland hub — collected by NISRA
Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland

See methodology and data sources for how popularity data is collected and what "confidence" means.

What the record shows

Recorded by 4 registrars between 1954 and 2024, ranked in 68 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #27, first reached in 1977.

It held a top-100 place in 42 years, 41 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 306 births, registered in Republic of Ireland in 1978.

Its record falls into 4 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 1 year.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1964, and 43 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Gilbert · #232, 36y
Giles · #265, 38y
Gina · #76, 71y
Gine · #385, 22y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 4 registrars, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Kerrie · #28, 67y
Brent · #22, 63y
Carmel · #21, 67y
Mina · #20, 69y

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1950 and 1959.

Nigel · #27, 69y
Trevor · #27, 74y
Aleksander · #26, 65y
Andre · #26, 74y

Gillian was ranked #27 in Republic of Ireland · Girls in 1977. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Gillian and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,573 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Gillian without appearing here.

Gillian moved ahead of

Kirsten Compare
In 2023 they stood at #4709 and #4056 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2024 that had become #3695 and #5891.
Tracy Compare
In 2020 they stood at #4001 and #3151 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2021 that had become #3961 and #5581.
Tyler Compare
In 2020 they stood at #4001 and #4001 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2021 that had become #3961 and #5581.
Brittany Compare
In 2023 they stood at #3961 and #3519 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2024 that had become #3695 and #4843.

Moved ahead of Gillian

Ezra Compare
In 2013 they stood at #3536 and #5742 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2014 that had become #5691 and #1628.
Eabha Compare
In 2008 they stood at #2320 and #5061 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2009 that had become #5556 and #2326.
Francis Compare
In 2022 they stood at #3961 and #4634 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2023 that had become #4709 and #1863.
Janet Compare
In 2022 they stood at #3961 and #4634 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2023 that had become #4709 and #2346.

Moved the opposite way to Gillian

Annie Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 while Annie went from #112 to #48.
Charlotte Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 while Charlotte went from #171 to #60.
Clodagh Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 while Clodagh went from #149 to #54.
Emily Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 while Emily went from #180 to #3.

Moved the same way as Gillian

Alma Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 and Alma from #327 to #625.
Audrey Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 and Audrey from #85 to #856.
Diane Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 and Diane from #215 to #727.
Eileen Compare
Between 1964 and 2023 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Gillian went from #107 to #856 and Eileen from #17 to #445.

What's not yet available

Meaning
Origin
Pronunciation
Nicknames and spelling variants

Absence from this list does not mean the name isn't genuinely meaningful or widely used — only that Namewise hasn't sourced and reviewed that content yet. Absence from a specific year or geography above does not prove zero use there either; official statistics only publish names above a minimum threshold.

Official popularity data is available for 4 regions, from 1954 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #27 in Republic of Ireland in 1977. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

Gillian

Gillian at a glance

What stands out in Gillian's record

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Gillian across 4 official records

Gillian by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Gillian appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Names published alongside Gillian

Gillian and the names beside it

Gillian moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Gillian

Moved the opposite way to Gillian

Moved the same way as Gillian

Gillian at a glance

What stands out in Gillian's record

Gillian across 4 official records

Gillian by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Gillian appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Names published alongside Gillian

Gillian and the names beside it

Gillian moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Gillian

Moved the opposite way to Gillian

Moved the same way as Gillian