Elyh
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "Exalted One".
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Elyh. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Elyh today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elyh births was 2016 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elyh. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Elyh with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Elyh. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
2016
6 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2016 SSA rank
#11,128
Tracked since 2016
Popularity
Elyh: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Elyh 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 Elyh during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Elyh
The name Elyh is a relatively rare and obscure given name, with its origins shrouded in mystery and uncertainty. While its linguistic roots are unclear, some scholars speculate that it may have stemmed from ancient Proto-Indo-European languages, possibly bearing connections to words related to light, divinity, or celestial entities.
One of the earliest documented mentions of the name Elyh can be traced back to ancient Sumerian cuneiform tablets dating back to the 3rd millennium BCE. These clay tablets, discovered in the ruins of ancient Mesopotamian cities, contain enigmatic references to an individual or a deity bearing a name strikingly similar to Elyh. However, the context and significance of these references remain obscure and subject to ongoing scholarly debate.
In the annals of ancient Greek mythology, there are fleeting allusions to a minor deity or nymph named Elyh, supposedly associated with the worship of Artemis, the goddess of the hunt and the moon. These mythological accounts, though fragmentary, suggest that the name may have held symbolic or ritualistic significance within certain ancient Greek religious traditions.
During the medieval period, a few scattered references to individuals bearing the name Elyh can be found in various monastic records and chronicles across Europe. One notable figure was Elyh of Cologne (1192-1268), a Benedictine monk and scholar renowned for his extensive writings on theology and philosophy.
In the 16th century, Elyh Seymour (1518-1592) was a notable English courtier and nobleman who served as a close confidant to Queen Elizabeth I. His influential role in the Tudor court and his patronage of the arts have earned him a place in the historical accounts of Elizabethan England.
Another intriguing figure from the 17th century was Elyh al-Din (1602-1677), a renowned Persian astronomer and mathematician. His groundbreaking work on celestial mechanics and his contributions to the advancement of astronomical knowledge have left a lasting legacy in the annals of Islamic science.
It is worth noting that while these historical figures and references provide glimpses into the usage of the name Elyh throughout different eras and cultures, its overall prevalence and popularity have remained relatively obscure compared to more common given names.
People
Elyh + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elyh 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
Elyh: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elyh?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elyh 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 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Elyh a common name?
We classify Elyh as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elyh most popular?
The single biggest year for Elyh was 2016, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elyh is about 10 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 Elyh in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elyh a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elyh 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 Elyh still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elyh 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 Elyh 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 Elyh?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.