Ilia
A feminine Russian name meaning "ascension" or "heaven".
Name Census estimates that about 914 living Americans carry the first name Ilia. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 79.7% of registrations being female. The average person named Ilia today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ilia births was 1980 (43 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ilia. 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
914
~ 1 in 375,005 Americans
Peak year
1980
43 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,343
Tracked since 1912
Gender
Gender distribution for Ilia
Ilia is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 987 total registrations, 200 (20.3%) were male and 787 (79.7%) were female.
Ilia as a male name
- Ranked #4,343 in 2024
- 24 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (24 births)
Ilia as a female name
- Ranked #7,717 in 2024
- 14 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1980 (43 births)
Popularity
Ilia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ilia from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 234 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Ilia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ilia 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 Ilia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ilias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. New York, California, Texas recorded the most babies named Ilia, while Texas, California, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 20 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ilia
The name Ilia has its origins in the ancient Greek language and culture, dating back to the classical period. It is derived from the Greek word "Helios," which means "sun." The name is believed to have been used as a reference to the powerful and radiant nature of the sun, a central figure in Greek mythology.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ilia can be found in the works of ancient Greek historians and writers. In the Iliad, the epic poem attributed to Homer, there is a character named Ilia who is mentioned as a daughter of the Trojan king Priam. This suggests that the name was in use during the 8th century BC, when the Iliad is believed to have been composed.
Throughout the centuries, the name Ilia has been borne by several notable figures in history. One prominent example is Ilia Muromets, a legendary Russian warrior and bogatyr (knight) who is believed to have lived in the 12th century. Ilia Muromets is a central figure in many Russian folk tales and is celebrated for his bravery and heroic deeds in defending the Russian lands.
Another significant figure associated with the name Ilia is Ilia II, the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia from 1588 to 1589. He was a prominent religious leader and played a crucial role in the cultural and spiritual life of Georgia during the late 16th century.
In the 19th century, Ilia Chavchavadze (1837-1907) was a prominent Georgian writer, poet, and public figure who made significant contributions to the development of the Georgian national identity and literature. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in modern Georgian history.
Ilia Repin (1844-1930) was a renowned Russian realist painter who is considered one of the most prominent figures in the Russian art world of the 19th century. His works, such as the famous painting "Barge Haulers on the Volga," are celebrated for their portrayal of Russian life and culture.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have carried the name Ilia throughout history, demonstrating its enduring presence across various cultures and time periods.
People
Ilia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ilia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with I
Other first names starting with I with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ilia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ilia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 914 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ilia 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 375,005 US residents.
Is Ilia a common name?
We classify Ilia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 987 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ilia most popular?
The single biggest year for Ilia was 1980, when 43 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ilia is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ilia a female name?
Yes, 79.7% of people registered as Ilia 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.