Louis first name popularity, history and meaning

Find out how popular the first name Louis has been for the last 50 years (from 1975 to 2024) and learn more about the meaning and history.

Meaning of Louis

A French masculine name derived from the Germanic Hludwig, meaning "renowned warrior".

Popularity of Louis by gender

Based on the last 50 years of data, Louis is more commonly used as a male name, with approximately 99% of people named Louis being male.

For the most recent data in 2024, there were 1,503 male babies and 0 female babies born with the name Louis.

YearMale CountFemale Count
20241,5030
20231,4745
20221,4275
20211,4130
20201,3316
20191,4735
20181,3870
20171,3010
20161,2420
20151,2085
20141,2280
20131,0700
20121,0560
20119210
20109210
20098840
20089090
20079370
20061,0010
20051,0020
20041,0500
20031,1030
20021,1435
20011,0960
20001,1355
19991,1430
19981,1810
19971,3100
19961,2837
19951,3609
19941,41210
19931,5827
19921,6195
19911,7255
19901,82015
19891,83517
19881,70516
19871,6839
19861,68624
19851,68719
19841,71016
19831,76416
19821,69317
19811,80623
19801,78620
19791,83813
19781,75420
19771,86617
19761,78123
19751,81213

The history of the first name Louis

The given name Louis originated from the Old Frankish word "Hlodovicus", which was derived from the Germanic elements "hlud" meaning "renowned" and "wig" meaning "battle". It first emerged during the 7th century in what is now modern-day France and Germany.

The name became popular across Europe after Louis I, also known as Louis the Pious (778-840 AD), who was the King of the Franks and co-Emperor of the Carolingian Empire. His name was rendered in Latin as "Hludovicus" or "Ludovicus".

Another influential figure was Louis IX of France (1214-1270), who was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1297. He is widely revered as Saint Louis and is the patron saint of the French monarchy.

In England, the name was introduced by the Norman conquest in the 11th century. One of the earliest recorded examples is Louis VIII of France (1187-1226), who briefly ruled as King of England in 1216-1217.

Notable historical figures with the name Louis include Louis XIV of France (1638-1715), also known as the Sun King, who reigned for 72 years and was one of the most influential monarchs in European history. Louis XVI (1754-1793) was the last king of France before the French Revolution.

Other famous individuals named Louis were Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), the French biologist renowned for his discoveries in microbiology and pasteurization, and Louis Braille (1809-1852), the inventor of the Braille system for reading and writing used by the blind.

Data source

The first name data used on this page comes from the Social Security Administration (SSA). They've been collecting data on baby names since 1880.

The history and meaning of the name Louis was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Louis, please contact us.

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