Billy

Meaning: Will and helmet
Origin: Variant of William (from Germanic)

Boy's name · #1068 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Popularity over time

Billy is an heirloom: its strongest era came around 1931, when it ranked #19. It has thinned since but never left the records — about 384,000 boys since 1880, ranked #1068 today.

Across the states

See where Billy is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 22 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Billy ranks in other countries and regions.

#37 in Australia (VIC) (2025) · #38 in Australia (QLD) (2025) · #39 in Ireland (2025) · #44 in Australia (NSW) (2025) · #84 in New Zealand (2025) · #110 in England & Wales (2025) · #209 in Scotland (2025) · #215 in N. Ireland (2025) · #228 in Sweden (2025) · #605 in France (2025) · #706 in Ecuador (2025) · #738 in Netherlands (2025) and 3 more.

Famous Billys

Billy Graham — American Baptist evangelist (1918–2018)
Billy Wilder — Austrian-born American filmmaker and screenwriter (1906–2002)
Billy the Kid — American outlaw and gunfighter (1859–1881)
Billy Joel — American singer, songwriter, and pianist (born 1949)
Billy Connolly — Scottish actor and comedian

In stories & tradition

Billy (Captain Marvel) — Batman: The Brave and the Bold (TV series)
Billy — Saw (film series)
Billy Bones — Treasure Island (book)

What Billys become

Among 2,852 notable people named Billy:

Sports figures appear 2.96× more often than among typical names — e.g. Billy Celeski, Australian association football player.

Similar names: Willie · Gerald · Bilal · Rylee · Bobby · Terry

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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