William

Meaning: Will and helmet
Origin: English (from Germanic via Norman French)

Nicknames: Bill, Billy, Will, Willie, Billie

Boy's name · #9 in the US (2025) · Timeless

Popularity over time

William has held steady since 1880, standing at #9 in 2025. At one stretch it held the national top 10 for 96 consecutive years.

Across the states

See where William is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 51 states, the #1 boy's name in 1 of them. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

William is especially popular in Norway, Australia (QLD), and Sweden.

#3 in Norway (2025) · #5 in Australia (QLD) (2025) · #7 in Sweden (2025) · #9 in Denmark (2025) · #10 in Australia (VIC) (2025) · #11 in Australia (NSW) (2025) · #13 in Finland (Swedish-sp.) (2025) · #16 in New Zealand (2025) · #25 in England & Wales (2025) · #44 in Belgium (2025) · #50 in Finland (other-lang.) (2025) · #53 in Scotland (2025) and 12 more.

Famous Williams

William Shakespeare — English playwright and poet (1564–1616)
William Blake — English poet and artist (1757–1827)
William Butler Yeats — Irish poet and playwright (1865–1939)
William Faulkner — American writer (1897–1962)
William Howard Taft — 27th President of the United States from 1909 to 1913 (1857–1930)

In stories & tradition

William Tell — Folk hero of Switzerland
William (Captain Marvel) — Batman: The Brave and the Bold (TV series)
William (Bill Weasley) — Harry Potter (novel series)

What Williams become

Among 37,502 notable people named William:

Military figures appear 3× more often than among typical names — e.g. William Tecumseh Sherman, American military officer (1820–1891).

Twin names

Popular twin pairings with William include Benjamin, James, and Andrew for boys, and Emma, Elizabeth, and Sophia for girls.

Spellings & nicknames

About 340 girls a year are given Billie as their full name, 210 boys Billy, 180 boys Will, and 150 boys Willie.

Similar names: John · Wyatt · James · Charles · Robert · Anthony

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

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