Guile
A French surname referring to sly cunning or trickery.
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Guile. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Guile today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Guile births was 2017 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Guile. 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 Guile. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
2017
8 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2017 SSA rank
#9,130
Tracked since 2017
Popularity
Guile: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Guile 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 Guile 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 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Guile
The given name Guile originates from the Old French word "guile", which means deceit, cunning, or trickery. It is derived from the Frankish word "wigila", which means watching or vigilant. The name likely emerged during the medieval period in France, although its exact origins are unclear.
Historically, the name Guile was not widely used, and there are few recorded instances of individuals bearing this name in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, the name did appear sporadically throughout history, often associated with characters known for their cunning or deceptive nature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Guile can be found in the 14th century French epic poem "Le Roman de la Rose", where a character named Guile personifies deceitfulness. In the 16th century, the name gained some popularity in England, where it was occasionally used as a given name or surname.
A notable historical figure with the name Guile was Guile de Rais (1404-1440), a French nobleman and military leader who fought alongside Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years' War. However, he later gained notoriety for his involvement in the torture and murder of numerous children, leading to his execution for crimes against humanity.
Another individual with the name Guile was Guile Crudgington (1562-1629), an English playwright and poet during the Elizabethan era. While not widely renowned, Crudgington's works often explored themes of deception and trickery, perhaps reflecting the meaning of his name.
In the 18th century, the name Guile was associated with Guile Renault (1712-1786), a French philosopher and writer known for his satirical works that criticized the societal norms and hypocrisy of his time.
During the 19th century, the name Guile appeared in the literary works of Charles Dickens, who used it as the name of a character in his novel "Little Dorrit". The character, Mr. Guile, was a cunning and manipulative lawyer, further reinforcing the name's association with deceitfulness.
While the name Guile has been historically uncommon, it has occasionally been used throughout various periods and cultures, often associated with characters or individuals known for their cunning, deceptive, or manipulative nature, reflecting the name's origins and meaning.
People
Guile + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Guile as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Guile: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Guile?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Guile 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Guile a common name?
We classify Guile as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Guile most popular?
The single biggest year for Guile was 2017, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Guile is about 9 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 Guile in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Guile a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Guile 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 Guile still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Guile 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 Guile 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 Guile?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.