Rilie
An English feminine name derived from surname Riley, meaning "rye meadow" or "rye clearing".
Name Census estimates that about 248 living Americans carry the first name Rilie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rilie today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rilie births was 2003 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rilie. 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
248
~ 1 in 1,382,074 Americans
Peak year
2003
21 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2020 SSA rank
#17,019
Tracked since 1994
Popularity
Rilie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rilie from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 164 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rilie 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 Rilie 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 Rilie
The name Rilie is of uncertain origin, with no clear evidence of its roots in any particular language or culture. Some linguists have suggested that it may be a variation of the Germanic name Rilind or the Scandinavian name Rilinda, both of which are thought to be derived from the Old Norse word "rile," meaning "strong" or "valiant." However, these connections are tenuous and unsubstantiated.
There are no known historical references to the name Rilie in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records. This lack of documentation makes it difficult to trace the name's origins or early usage accurately.
The earliest recorded examples of the name Rilie are relatively recent, with the first instances appearing in various birth records and census data from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, these records provide little insight into the name's meaning or etymology.
Despite its obscure origins, there have been a few notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Rilie:
1. Rilie Faulkner (1892-1967) was an American writer and poet from Mississippi. She was part of the literary renaissance in the Southern United States during the early 20th century.
2. Rilie Hoyt (1918-2003) was a Canadian politician and member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1952 to 1972. She was known for her advocacy for women's rights and social welfare programs.
3. Rilie Langer (1901-1987) was a German-American artist and sculptor. Her works were exhibited in galleries across Europe and the United States, and she is particularly known for her abstract bronze sculptures.
4. Rilie Maclaren (1925-2008) was a Scottish academic and historian. She was a professor at the University of Edinburgh and authored several books on Scottish history and culture.
5. Rilie Patel (1938-2021) was an Indian entrepreneur and business magnate. He founded the successful Patel Group of Companies, which operated in various sectors including real estate, hospitality, and technology.
While the name Rilie may have an elusive past, it has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, each leaving their mark on history in their own unique way.
People
Rilie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rilie as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rilie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rilie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 248 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rilie 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 1,382,074 US residents.
Is Rilie a common name?
We classify Rilie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 252 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rilie most popular?
The single biggest year for Rilie was 2003, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rilie is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rilie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rilie 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.