Ellyse
Variant spelling of Elise, a feminine name of French origin meaning "God's promise".
Name Census estimates that about 767 living Americans carry the first name Ellyse. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ellyse today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ellyse births was 2003 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ellyse. 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.
People living today
767
~ 1 in 446,877 Americans
Peak year
2003
32 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,508
Tracked since 1983
Popularity
Ellyse: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ellyse from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 254 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ellyse 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 Ellyse during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ellyses live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ellyse
The name Ellyse is a feminine given name of English origin, derived from the Hebrew name Elizabeth, which means "my God is an oath" or "my God is abundance." The name Elizabeth itself is a combination of the Hebrew words "El" (God) and "shava" (oath or abundance).
Ellyse is a variant spelling of the more common Elizabeth, likely emerging in the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance period as a way to distinguish the name or add a unique twist to its spelling. The earliest known use of the spelling Ellyse dates back to the 16th century, although records from that time are scarce.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ellyse is found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, England, where an Ellyse Woodward was listed as being baptized in 1587. Additionally, an Ellyse Browne was recorded as a resident of Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, in the late 16th century.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Ellyse. Ellyse Mottard (1628-1698) was a French Benedictine nun and author known for her religious writings. Ellyse Maréchal (1755-1792) was a French actress and playwright during the French Revolution era. Ellyse Bradshaw (1818-1892) was an American nurse who served in the American Civil War.
Another famous Ellyse was Ellyse Edith Wood (1871-1953), an English suffragette and activist who campaigned for women's rights and the right to vote. Ellyse Marguerite de Gaspé (1887-1967) was a Canadian painter and sculptor, renowned for her depictions of rural life in Quebec.
It's worth noting that while the name Ellyse has been used throughout history, it has never been a widely popular name in comparison to its root name, Elizabeth. However, its unique spelling and connection to the more common Elizabeth have allowed it to endure as a distinct and meaningful name choice for many parents over the centuries.
People
Ellyse + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ellyse 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
Ellyse: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ellyse?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 767 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ellyse 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 1 in 446,877 US residents.
Is Ellyse a common name?
We classify Ellyse as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 783 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ellyse most popular?
The single biggest year for Ellyse was 2003, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ellyse is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ellyse a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ellyse in the SSA data are female. 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.
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.