UK boy's name
Harry
A masculine name of French origin meaning "home ruler" or "ruler of the home".
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.
Harry is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Harry popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #20, with 1,765 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2011, with 7,523 births.
This profile covers 141,693 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 23% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 150,050 living people in the UK are called Harry. 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
- • Harry ranked #20 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 1,765 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2011, when 7,523 boys were registered as Harry.
- • Harry ranks best in London in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #2 in 2012.
- • About 150,050 living people in the UK are estimated to have Harry as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#20
2024
Births in 2024
1,765
Latest year
Peak year
2011
7,523 births
Estimated living
150,050
2026
Meaning
What does Harry mean?
The name Harry is derived from the Germanic name Harinric, which is composed of the elements "hari" meaning army or warrior, and "ric" meaning power or ruler. The name first appeared in the 8th century and was widespread among the Franks and Norsemen.
The name gained popularity in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066, as it was introduced by the Norman nobility. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Henry I of England, who reigned from 1100 to 1135 and was known as Harry le Gros (Harry the Fat).
In the Middle Ages, the name Harry was often used as a shortened form of the name Henry, which was derived from the Germanic name Heimrich. This name was borne by several English kings, including Henry II (1133-1189), Henry III (1207-1272), and Henry V (1387-1422), who was immortalized in Shakespeare's play of the same name.
During the Renaissance, the name Harry became more widely used as an independent given name. One notable bearer was Harry Hotspur (1364-1403), an English knight and military commander who fought in the Battle of Shrewsbury during the Wars of the Roses.
In the 17th century, the name Harry was associated with the House of Stuart, as it was the nickname of King Henry IV of France (1553-1610) and his son, King Henry IX (1594-1612), who were descendants of the Stuart monarchs of Scotland.
Other famous Harrys throughout history include Harry Houdini (1874-1926), the legendary Hungarian-American illusionist and escape artist; Harry S. Truman (1884-1972), the 33rd President of the United States; and Sir Harry Lauder (1870-1950), a Scottish singer and comedian who was a popular music hall performer in the early 20th century.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Harry over time
The chart below shows babies named Harry 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 Harry, the clearest high point is 2011. The latest England and Wales figure is 1,765 births in 2024, compared with 7,523 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Harry by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Harry 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 | #14 | 12,265 | 5 |
| 2010s | #3 | 56,778 | 10 |
| 2000s | #7 | 53,910 | 10 |
| 1990s | #16 | 18,740 | 4 |
Geography
Where Harry is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Harry. 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.
Harry ranks best in London in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #2 in 2012.
Across the UK
Harry in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#31 in 2024
51 years of NRS records, 5,986 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#13 in 2024
28 years of NISRA records, 3,535 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Harry
-
Harry Smith
cricketer
English cricketer, born 1906
1906-1995
-
Harry Chilcott
politician
politician, died 1942
1871-1942
-
Harry Trelawny
Catholic priest; Christian minister; cleric
Dissenting minister, Church of England clergyman, and Roman Catholic priest
1756-1856
Related
Names similar to Harry
- Henry 65,177
- Harrison 45,958
- Harvey 35,648
- Harley 22,095
- Hugo 18,779
- Hayden 12,622
- Hunter 10,350
- Hudson 9,104
- Hamza 8,564
- Hassan 5,982
- Hasan 3,599
- Harris 3,545
FAQ
Harry: questions and answers
How popular is the name Harry in the UK right now?
In 2024, Harry was ranked #20 for boys in England and Wales, with 1,765 births registered.
When was Harry most popular?
The peak year on record was 2011, with 7,523 babies registered as Harry in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Harry?
A masculine name of French origin meaning "home ruler" or "ruler of the home".
How many people are called Harry in the UK?
A total of 141,693 babies have been registered as Harry across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 5,986 more in Scotland and 3,535 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Harry most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Harry ranks best in London, where it placed #2 in 2012. 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.