NameCensus.

UK name, mostly girls

Elija

A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "my God is Yahweh".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Elija is mostly registered for girls in the UK records. People looking for Elija popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4843, with 4 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2016, with 29 births.

This profile covers 204 England and Wales registrations across 16 recorded years from 2008 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 14% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 213 living people in the UK are called Elija. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Elija ranked #4843 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 4 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2016, when 29 girls were registered as Elija.
  • Elija ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #426 in 2015.
  • About 213 living people in the UK are estimated to have Elija as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
  • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 91.5% of Elija registrations are for girls.

Latest rank (E&W)

#4843

2024

Births in 2024

4

Latest year

Peak year

2016

29 births

Estimated living

213

2026

Gender

Boy and girl registrations for Elija

In England and Wales birth records, Elija has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 8.5% of registrations are for boys and 91.5% are for girls.

These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.

91% girls
Boys19 (8.5%)Girls204 (91.5%)

Elija registered for boys

  • Ranked #4,789 in 2022
  • 3 boys registered in 2022
  • Peak: 2021 (4 births)

Elija registered for girls

  • Ranked #4,843 in 2024
  • 4 girls registered in 2024
  • Peak: 2016 (29 births)

Meaning

What does Elija mean?

The name Elija is a variant spelling of the Hebrew name Elijah, which means "my God is Yahweh" or "Yahweh is God." It originated in ancient Israel and is derived from the elements "El," meaning "God," and "Yahweh," the Hebrew name for the God of Israel.

Elijah was a prominent prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. He is venerated in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. According to the biblical narratives, Elijah performed several miracles, including raising the dead, and he was eventually taken up to heaven in a whirlwind.

One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Elija dates back to the 12th century. A notable figure with this name was Elija ben Solomon, also known as Elijah Bashyatchi, a famous Jewish scholar and poet who lived in the late 15th century in Ottoman Palestine.

In the 16th century, Elija Levita was a renowned Jewish grammarian and lexicographer who made significant contributions to the study of Hebrew linguistics. He was born in Germany around 1469 and died in Italy in 1549.

During the 17th century, Elija Hayyim ben Benjamin Wolf Ferrier, also known as Elijah Montalto, was a prominent Sephardic Jewish philosopher and physician. He was born in France in 1567 and died in the Netherlands in 1616.

In the 18th century, Elija ben Shlomo Zalman, also known as the Vilna Gaon or the Genius of Vilna, was a renowned Lithuanian Jewish rabbi and scholar. He was born in 1720 and died in 1797.

Another notable figure with the name Elija was Elija Levi, an Italian rabbi and scholar who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was born in Modena, Italy, in 1760 and died in 1832.

These are just a few examples of historical figures who bore the name Elija, which has its roots in ancient Hebrew and has been used across various cultures and religions over centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Elija over time

The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Elija in England and Wales, from 2008 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Elija, the clearest high point is 2016. The latest England and Wales figure is 4 births in 2024, compared with 29 at the peak.

Babies born per year

BoysGirls
07152229200820162024

Decades

Elija by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Elija was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #3147 41 5
2010s #1995 159 10
2000s #4524 4 1

Geography

Where Elija is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Elija. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Elija ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #426 in 2015.

Northern Ireland
3

Across the UK

Elija in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#426 in 2015

3 years of NISRA records, 10 total registered

Related

Names similar to Elija

FAQ

Elija: questions and answers

How popular is the name Elija in the UK right now?

In 2024, Elija was ranked #4843 for girls in England and Wales, with 4 births registered.

When was Elija most popular?

The peak year on record was 2016, with 29 babies registered as Elija in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Elija?

A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "my God is Yahweh".

How many people are called Elija in the UK?

A total of 204 babies have been registered as Elija across the 16 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here and 10 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Elija most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Elija ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #426 in 2015. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.