Louis
Louis was the 249th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,391 babies. Its best year was 1882, when it ranked 18th; the most babies were born in 1921 (7,247). Over the last ten years it has moved up 47 places. More babies were named Louis in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning famous in battle · French, Germanic
Say it LOO-is /ˈluɪs/
- Rank in 2025
- #249 boys, up 11 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,391boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19217,247 babies
- Total since 1880
- 409,317babies recorded
What does the name Louis mean?
Louis is the French form of the Frankish name Chlodowig. DMNES and Wiktionary derive it from Germanic hlud, 'loud; famous', and wig, 'battle', so 'famous in battle'. DMNES lists early Frankish kings, kings of the Franks and two 13th-century French saints of the name, and Wiktionary notes that Clovis is a related form. English inherited the form Lewis in the Middle Ages; Luis, Luigi and Ludwig are its Spanish, Italian and German forms. In the US it is said LOO-is or LOO-ee.
hlūt (Old High German, “loud; famous”)wīg (Old High German, “battle, war”)
How sure is this? Probable.
Related names: Lewis, Luis, Luigi, Ludwig, Louie, Louise, Clovis.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean warrior, names that mean fame.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Louis', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Wiktionary, entry 'Louis', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Louis (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Louis
The usual nicknames for Louis are Lou and Louie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Louis in the last five years, 30 were named Louie, against 8 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lou · also for Lewis, Elouise, Eloise | Traditional | #1,929 | 362 |
| Louie · also for Lewis, Louise | Traditional | #596 | 2,188 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Louiss go by each one.
Louis popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 2,847 since 1880, 6 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #249 | 1,391 |
| 2020 | #260 | 1,334 |
| 2010 | #342 | 921 |
| 2000 | #279 | 1,135 |
| 1990 | #168 | 1,820 |
| 1980 | #151 | 1,787 |
| 1970 | #124 | 2,642 |
| 1960 | #106 | 4,128 |
| 1950 | #66 | 4,947 |
| 1940 | #50 | 4,324 |
| 1930 | #34 | 5,810 |
| 1920 | #28 | 6,966 |
| 1910 | #24 | 1,569 |
| 1900 | #26 | 1,097 |
| 1890 | #19 | 860 |
| 1880 | #19 | 828 |
How popular is Louis, counting every spelling?
Louis has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #265 for boys in 2025, against #249 on the official list, because Kayson/Kaison/Kaysen and Eric/Erick/Erik and Zayn/Zayne/Zain move ahead once their spellings are combined.
How many kids will share the name Louis?
1,391 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Louis (0.39 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Louis born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 6 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Louis.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Louis?
About 164,100 people born in the US named Louis are alive today, with a median age of 58; half are between 35 and 72. That makes Louis a name most people associate with older generations. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Louis by state
How common Louis was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Vermont (4.0×), District of Columbia (4.0×), Minnesota (3.4×), Missouri (2.5×), South Dakota (2.4×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Mexico, West Virginia, Nevada.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Louis: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Louis, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Louis · Sibling names for Louis
Questions about the name Louis
What does Louis mean?
Louis means “famous in battle” (French, Germanic origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Louis?
Louis was the 249th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,391 babies. Its best year was 1882, when it ranked 18th; the most babies were born in 1921 (7,247). Over the last ten years it has moved up 47 places. More babies were named Louis in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Louis a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Louis in the US.
Where is Louis most popular?
In 2021–2025, Louis was most common in Vermont (3.34 per 1,000 boys), followed by District of Columbia and Minnesota.