UK boy's name
Luke
A masculine given name of Greek origin meaning "bright or from Lucania".
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.
Luke is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Luke popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #138, with 387 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1996, with 5,664 births.
This profile covers 72,247 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 7% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 80,263 living people in the UK are called Luke. 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
- • Luke ranked #138 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 387 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1996, when 5,664 boys were registered as Luke.
- • Luke ranks best in North East in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #1 in 2005.
- • About 80,263 living people in the UK are estimated to have Luke as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#138
2024
Births in 2024
387
Latest year
Peak year
1996
5,664 births
Estimated living
80,263
2026
Meaning
What does Luke mean?
The name Luke has its origins in the Latin name Lucas, which itself is derived from the Greek name Loukas. The Greek name Loukas is thought to have emerged from the Latin word "lux" meaning "light." The name Luke became popular in Christian cultures due to its association with the apostle Luke, one of the four evangelists who wrote the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament.
The name Luke has a long history, with references dating back to ancient times. One of the earliest known mentions of the name is in the Gospel of Luke, written in the first century AD, where the author identifies himself as "Luke the beloved physician." Another early reference is in the Acts of the Apostles, which also mentions Luke as a companion of the apostle Paul.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the name Luke. One of the most famous is the Italian painter Fra Angelico, born Guido di Pietro in 1395, who was also known as Fra Giovanni da Fiesole or Blessed Fra Angelico. His works, including the renowned frescoes in the Convent of San Marco in Florence, are widely admired for their artistic and spiritual beauty.
Another prominent figure named Luke was the English playwright and poet Luke Milbourne, who lived from 1649 to 1720. He is best known for his critical works on poetry and drama, as well as his translations of classical literature.
In the world of science, Luke Howard (1772-1864) was an English meteorologist and chemist who introduced the nomenclature system for classifying clouds, which is still used today. His work played a crucial role in the development of modern meteorology.
Luke Wadding (1588-1657) was an Irish Franciscan friar, historian, and theologian who made significant contributions to the study of Irish history and the preservation of Irish manuscripts. He is considered one of the most influential Irish scholars of the 17th century.
Another notable figure with the name Luke is Luke Pryor (1735-1785), an American planter and politician who served as the 15th Governor of Virginia from 1779 to 1781 during the American Revolutionary War.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Luke over time
The chart below shows babies named Luke 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 Luke, the clearest high point is 1996. The latest England and Wales figure is 387 births in 2024, compared with 5,664 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Luke by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Luke 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 | #118 | 2,378 | 5 |
| 2010s | #60 | 12,542 | 10 |
| 2000s | #17 | 36,600 | 10 |
| 1990s | #12 | 20,727 | 4 |
Geography
Where Luke is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Luke. 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.
Luke ranks best in North East in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #1 in 2005.
Across the UK
Luke in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#50 in 2024
51 years of NRS records, 5,734 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#57 in 2024
28 years of NISRA records, 3,035 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Luke
-
Luke Whitehouse
gymnast
gymnast
2002-
-
Luke Yendle
rugby union player
Welsh rugby union player
2000-
-
Luke Woolfenden
association football player
English association football player (born 1998)
1998-
-
Luke Wood
cricketer
cricketer (born 1995)
1995-
-
Luke Woodland
association football player
Filipino footballer (born 1995)
1995-
-
Luke Young
association football player
English association football player, born 1993
1993-
-
Luke Williams
association football player
English footballer (born 1993)
1993-
-
Luke Wilkinson
association football player
Footballer (born 1990)
1990-
Related
Names similar to Luke
- Lewis 69,555
- Leo 63,249
- Liam 60,482
- Lucas 49,061
- Logan 40,771
- Louis 35,898
- Luca 30,323
- Louie 24,242
- Leon 22,308
- Levi 9,931
- Lee 7,861
- Leonardo 6,821
FAQ
Luke: questions and answers
How popular is the name Luke in the UK right now?
In 2024, Luke was ranked #138 for boys in England and Wales, with 387 births registered.
When was Luke most popular?
The peak year on record was 1996, with 5,664 babies registered as Luke in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Luke?
A masculine given name of Greek origin meaning "bright or from Lucania".
How many people are called Luke in the UK?
A total of 72,247 babies have been registered as Luke across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 5,734 more in Scotland and 3,035 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Luke most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Luke ranks best in North East, where it placed #1 in 2005. 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.