UK boy's name
Louis
A French masculine name derived from the Germanic Hludwig, meaning "renowned warrior".
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.
Louis is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Louis popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #47, with 1,092 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2004, with 1,976 births.
This profile covers 35,898 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 55% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 38,293 living people in the UK are called Louis. 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
- • Louis ranked #47 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 1,092 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2004, when 1,976 boys were registered as Louis.
- • Louis ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #98 in 2024.
- • About 38,293 living people in the UK are estimated to have Louis as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#47
2024
Births in 2024
1,092
Latest year
Peak year
2004
1,976 births
Estimated living
38,293
2026
Meaning
What does Louis mean?
The given name Louis originated from the Old Frankish word "Hlodovicus", which was derived from the Germanic elements "hlud" meaning "renowned" and "wig" meaning "battle". It first emerged during the 7th century in what is now modern-day France and Germany.
The name became popular across Europe after Louis I, also known as Louis the Pious (778-840 AD), who was the King of the Franks and co-Emperor of the Carolingian Empire. His name was rendered in Latin as "Hludovicus" or "Ludovicus".
Another influential figure was Louis IX of France (1214-1270), who was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1297. He is widely revered as Saint Louis and is the patron saint of the French monarchy.
In England, the name was introduced by the Norman conquest in the 11th century. One of the earliest recorded examples is Louis VIII of France (1187-1226), who briefly ruled as King of England in 1216-1217.
Notable historical figures with the name Louis include Louis XIV of France (1638-1715), also known as the Sun King, who reigned for 72 years and was one of the most influential monarchs in European history. Louis XVI (1754-1793) was the last king of France before the French Revolution.
Other famous individuals named Louis were Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), the French biologist renowned for his discoveries in microbiology and pasteurization, and Louis Braille (1809-1852), the inventor of the Braille system for reading and writing used by the blind.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Louis over time
The chart below shows babies named Louis 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 Louis, the clearest high point is 2004. The latest England and Wales figure is 1,092 births in 2024, compared with 1,976 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Louis by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Louis 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 | #48 | 5,938 | 5 |
| 2010s | #72 | 9,358 | 10 |
| 2000s | #49 | 15,347 | 10 |
| 1990s | #54 | 5,255 | 4 |
Geography
Where Louis is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Louis. 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.
Louis ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #98 in 2024.
Across the UK
Louis in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#98 in 2024
50 years of NRS records, 2,131 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#104 in 2024
28 years of NISRA records, 574 total registered
Related
Names similar to Louis
- Luke 72,247
- Lewis 69,555
- Leo 63,249
- Liam 60,482
- Lucas 49,061
- Logan 40,771
- Luca 30,323
- Louie 24,242
- Leon 22,308
- Levi 9,931
- Lee 7,861
- Leonardo 6,821
FAQ
Louis: questions and answers
How popular is the name Louis in the UK right now?
In 2024, Louis was ranked #47 for boys in England and Wales, with 1,092 births registered.
When was Louis most popular?
The peak year on record was 2004, with 1,976 babies registered as Louis in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Louis?
A French masculine name derived from the Germanic Hludwig, meaning "renowned warrior".
How many people are called Louis in the UK?
A total of 35,898 babies have been registered as Louis across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 2,131 more in Scotland and 574 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Louis most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Louis ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #98 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.