NameCensus.

UK name, mostly boys

Rylee

A feminine name of American origin meaning "brave little bear".

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.

Also recorded as a girls' name in the UK, with 513 girls.

Rylee is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Rylee popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1322, with 20 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2011, with 185 births.

This profile covers 1,491 England and Wales registrations across 26 recorded years from 1999 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 11% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 1,574 living people in the UK are called Rylee. 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

  • Rylee ranked #1322 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 20 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2011, when 185 boys were registered as Rylee.
  • Rylee ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #414 in 2022.
  • Rylee is also recorded for girls, but the boys side is the larger UK variant in these records.
  • About 1,574 living people in the UK are estimated to have Rylee as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
  • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 74.4% of Rylee registrations are for boys.

Latest rank (E&W)

#1322

2024

Births in 2024

20

Latest year

Peak year

2011

185 births

Estimated living

1,574

2026

Gender

Boy and girl registrations for Rylee

In England and Wales birth records, Rylee has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 74.4% of registrations are for boys and 25.6% 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.

74% boys
26% girls
Boys1,491 (74.4%)Girls513 (25.6%)

Rylee registered for boys

  • Ranked #1,322 in 2024
  • 20 boys registered in 2024
  • Peak: 2011 (185 births)

Rylee registered for girls

  • Ranked #1,097 in 2024
  • 31 girls registered in 2024
  • Peak: 2021 (54 births)

Meaning

What does Rylee mean?

The name Rylee is a gender-neutral name of English origin, derived from the Old English surname Riley, which itself is believed to have originated from the Old English words "rig" meaning "ridge" and "leah" meaning "meadow" or "clearing." The name Rylee can be traced back to the Middle Ages, with records showing its use as a surname in England as early as the 13th century.

While the exact origin of the name Rylee as a given name is unclear, it is thought to have emerged as a variant of the more traditional names Riley and Ryleigh in the late 20th century. One of the earliest recorded uses of Rylee as a given name can be found in the 1970s, likely influenced by the growing popularity of unique and unconventional baby names during that time period.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Rylee, although many of them may have used it as a surname or middle name rather than a first name. One notable example is Rylee Batt, an Australian para-athlete who competed in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, winning a silver medal in the women's javelin throw F38 event.

Another historical figure with the name Rylee is Rylee McGraw, a 19th-century American outlaw and gunslinger who was active in the American Old West during the latter half of the 1800s. Records show that Rylee McGraw was involved in several bank robberies and shootouts with law enforcement before eventually being killed in a gunfight in 1887.

In the world of literature, Rylee Mackenzie is the protagonist of a series of young adult novels written by Canadian author Kelley Armstrong, which follow the adventures of a teenage girl who discovers she has supernatural abilities.

Moving to the realm of sports, Rylee Steele was a professional baseball player from the United States who played as a catcher in the Negro Leagues during the 1940s and 1950s. Steele was known for his defensive skills behind the plate and was considered one of the top catchers in the Negro Leagues during his career.

Finally, in the field of music, Rylee Walker is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has released several critically acclaimed albums in the genres of folk and Americana. Walker's unique blend of traditional and contemporary styles has earned him praise from both critics and fellow musicians alike.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Rylee over time

The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Rylee in England and Wales, from 1999 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 Rylee, the clearest high point is 2011. The latest England and Wales figure is 20 births in 2024, compared with 185 at the peak.

Babies born per year

BoysGirls
051103154205199920112024

Decades

Rylee by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Rylee 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 #1022 145 5
2010s #594 867 10
2000s #964 475 10
1990s #2425 4 1

Geography

Where Rylee is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Rylee. 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.

Rylee ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #414 in 2022.

Northern Ireland
3
Scotland
3

Across the UK

Rylee in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#727 in 2024

11 years of NRS records, 48 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#414 in 2022

11 years of NISRA records, 45 total registered

Related

Names similar to Rylee

FAQ

Rylee: questions and answers

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

In 2024, Rylee was ranked #1322 for boys in England and Wales, with 20 births registered.

When was Rylee most popular?

The peak year on record was 2011, with 185 babies registered as Rylee in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Rylee?

A feminine name of American origin meaning "brave little bear".

How many people are called Rylee in the UK?

A total of 1,491 babies have been registered as Rylee across the 26 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 48 more in Scotland and 45 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Rylee most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Rylee ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #414 in 2022. 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.