Illyria
A feminine name referring to an ancient region in the Balkan Peninsula.
Name Census estimates that about 148 living Americans carry the first name Illyria. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Illyria today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Illyria births was 2023 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Illyria. 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 Illyria with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
148
~ 1 in 2,315,908 Americans
Peak year
2023
12 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#14,093
Tracked since 2004
Popularity
Illyria: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Illyria from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 71 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Illyria remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Illyria 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 Illyria during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Illyria
The name Illyria has its roots in the ancient Illyrian civilization that flourished in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula during the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, roughly between the 7th century BC and the 1st century AD. It is derived from the Greek word "Illyrios," referring to the Illyrian tribes that inhabited this region.
The Illyrians were a group of Indo-European people who spoke the Illyrian languages, a branch of the Indo-European language family. Their territory included parts of modern-day Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. The name Illyria was used to refer to the region inhabited by these tribes.
In ancient texts, the name Illyria appears in the writings of Greek and Roman historians and geographers, such as Herodotus, Thucydides, Strabo, and Pliny the Elder. They described the Illyrians as fierce warriors and skilled seafarers who frequently clashed with the Greeks and Romans.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Illyria dates back to the 4th century BC when Illyrian Queen Teuta led a rebellion against the Roman Republic. Another notable figure was Agron, the Illyrian king who ruled from around 250 BC to 230 BC and expanded the Illyrian kingdom to its greatest extent.
In the 3rd century BC, the Illyrian kingdom came into conflict with the Roman Republic, leading to the Illyrian Wars. After their defeat, the Illyrians were gradually absorbed into the Roman Empire, and their culture and language were heavily influenced by Roman civilization.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Illyria. One example is Illyria Regis (1592-1675), an English writer and translator who published works on philosophy and religion. Another is Illyria Castriota (1504-1572), an Albanian noblewoman and the last member of the Castriota family, descendants of the famous Albanian leader Skanderbeg.
In literature, the name Illyria appears in William Shakespeare's play "Twelfth Night," where it is the name of a fictional country where part of the play's action takes place. This literary reference contributed to the name's enduring legacy and popularity.
People
Illyria + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Illyria 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
Illyria: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Illyria?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 148 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Illyria 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 2,315,908 US residents.
Is Illyria a common name?
We classify Illyria as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 149 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Illyria most popular?
The single biggest year for Illyria was 2023, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Illyria is about 11 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 Illyria in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Illyria a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Illyria 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.
Is Illyria still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Illyria 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 Illyria 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 many people are called Illyria?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.