UK girl's name
Freyja
A feminine name of Norse origin meaning "noble lady" or "lady".
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.
Freyja is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Freyja popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #358, with 123 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2022, with 152 births.
This profile covers 1,792 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland 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 81% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 2,043 living people in the UK are called Freyja. 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
- • Freyja ranked #358 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 123 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2022, when 152 girls were registered as Freyja.
- • Freyja ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #196 in 2024.
- • About 2,043 living people in the UK are estimated to have Freyja as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#358
2024
Births in 2024
123
Latest year
Peak year
2022
152 births
Estimated living
2,043
2026
Meaning
What does Freyja mean?
Freyja is a feminine given name of Old Norse origin, derived from the name of the Norse goddess of love, beauty, and fertility, Freyja. The name is believed to have emerged during the Viking Age, around the 8th to 11th centuries CE, when the Norse pagans worshipped a pantheon of gods and goddesses.
The name Freyja is thought to be related to the Old Norse word "fró," which means "lady" or "mistress." It is also associated with the Old Norse word "frjó," meaning "seed" or "offspring," reflecting Freyja's role as a fertility goddess. The name is sometimes spelled as Freya or Freyia, depending on the language and cultural context.
Freyja was a prominent figure in Norse mythology, and her name appears in various ancient texts and sagas, such as the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda, which were compiled in the 13th century CE. These texts describe Freyja as the daughter of the sea god Njörðr and the sister of the fertility god Freyr. She was revered for her beauty, her ability to inspire love, and her power over fertility and childbirth.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Freyja dates back to the 9th century CE, when a Swedish woman named Freyja was mentioned in the Saga of the Jómsvikings. Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Freyja, including:
1. Freyja Haraldsóttir (c. 975 – c. 1050), a Norwegian noblewoman and the daughter of King Harald Greyhide. 2. Freyja Eriksdotter (c. 1250 – c. 1310), a Swedish princess and the daughter of King Eric XI of Sweden. 3. Freyja Gunnarsdóttir (c. 1530 – c. 1590), an Icelandic poet and one of the few known female poets of the Icelandic Renaissance. 4. Freyja von Moltke (1852 – 1935), a German writer and social activist, known for her efforts in promoting women's rights and education. 5. Freyja Víðarsdóttir (1980 – present), an Icelandic actress and television personality, known for her roles in Icelandic films and TV series.
The name Freyja has remained popular among Scandinavian and Germanic cultures, and it continues to be used as a given name in various parts of the world, particularly in regions with strong Norse cultural influences or connections.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Freyja over time
The chart below shows babies named Freyja registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 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 Freyja, the clearest high point is 2022. The latest England and Wales figure is 123 births in 2024, compared with 152 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Freyja by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Freyja 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 | #336 | 676 | 5 |
| 2010s | #597 | 731 | 10 |
| 2000s | #854 | 335 | 10 |
| 1990s | #1431 | 50 | 4 |
Geography
Where Freyja is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Freyja. 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.
Freyja ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #196 in 2024.
Across the UK
Freyja in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#196 in 2024
22 years of NRS records, 221 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#212 in 2024
6 years of NISRA records, 40 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Freyja
-
Freyja Prentice
modern pentathlete
1990-
Related
Names similar to Freyja
- Freya 50,564
- Florence 32,908
- Francesca 18,752
- Faith 14,325
- Fatima 11,112
- Faye 8,999
- Felicity 8,554
- Frankie 6,977
- Ffion 6,115
- Flora 3,499
- Frances 3,417
- Fatimah 3,065
FAQ
Freyja: questions and answers
How popular is the name Freyja in the UK right now?
In 2024, Freyja was ranked #358 for girls in England and Wales, with 123 births registered.
When was Freyja most popular?
The peak year on record was 2022, with 152 babies registered as Freyja in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Freyja?
A feminine name of Norse origin meaning "noble lady" or "lady".
How many people are called Freyja in the UK?
A total of 1,792 babies have been registered as Freyja across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 221 more in Scotland and 40 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Freyja most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Freyja ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #196 in 2024. 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.