Eliger
Of uncertain origin, possibly from the Old French name Eleger.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Eliger. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Eliger today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Eliger births was 1923 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Eliger. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Eliger. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1923
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1923 SSA rank
#4,408
Tracked since 1923
Popularity
Eliger: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Eliger by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Eliger during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Eliger
The name Eliger has its roots in the Old Germanic languages, specifically the Proto-Germanic form *Aligair, which was later adapted into Old Norse as Ælgeirr and Old English as Ælgær. The name is composed of two elements: "alj," meaning "foreign" or "strange," and "gair," meaning "spear."
This name's origins can be traced back to the early medieval period, around the 5th to 8th centuries. It was prevalent among the Germanic tribes that inhabited various regions of northern and western Europe, including modern-day Germany, Scandinavia, and parts of Britain.
While there are no known ancient texts or religious scriptures that directly reference the name Eliger, it is possible that it was mentioned in some of the early Germanic sagas or chronicles. However, these records have not survived or have not been fully deciphered.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Eliger can be found in the Domesday Book, a great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. In this document, a landowner named Eliger is listed as holding lands in Lincolnshire.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Eliger. One of the earliest was Eliger of Toul (c. 640 – c. 690), a Frankish nobleman and saint who served as the Bishop of Toul in modern-day France.
Another notable figure was Eliger of Huy (c. 970 – 1051), a Benedictine monk and scholar from the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, now part of Belgium. He is known for his writings on theology and his contributions to the monastic reform movement of the 11th century.
In the 12th century, there was Eliger of Lucca (c. 1110 – 1184), an Italian jurist and legal scholar who played a significant role in the development of Roman law during the medieval period.
Moving to the 13th century, we encounter Eliger of Ribemont (c. 1210 – 1272), a French prelate who served as the Bishop of Cambrai and played an important diplomatic role in the conflicts between France and the Holy Roman Empire.
Finally, in the 15th century, there was Eliger of Calw (c. 1450 – 1520), a German humanist scholar and educator who was known for his contributions to the study of classical literature and his advocacy for educational reforms.
People
Eliger + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Eliger as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Eliger: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Eliger?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Eliger going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Eliger a common name?
We classify Eliger as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Eliger most popular?
The single biggest year for Eliger was 1923, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Eliger is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Eliger in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Eliger a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Eliger in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Eliger still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Eliger in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Eliger can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Eliger?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.