Tilly
A diminutive form of the feminine names Matilda or Tilda.
Name Census estimates that about 2,310 living Americans carry the first name Tilly. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tilly today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tilly births was 2024 (273 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tilly. 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
- • Tilly is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 10 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
2.3K
~ 1 in 148,379 Americans
Peak year
2024
273 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#953
Tracked since 1912
Popularity
Tilly: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tilly from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 1,148 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tilly 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 Tilly during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tillys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 33 states and territories. Texas, California, New York recorded the most babies named Tilly, while Mississippi, Alabama, South Dakota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 39 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tilly
The name Tilly is a diminutive form of the Germanic name Tilla, which is derived from the Old High German word "tilli" meaning "fertile" or "productive." It is a feminine name that dates back to the Middle Ages in Central and Western Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tilly can be found in the 13th-century German epic poem "Nibelungenlied," where it is mentioned as the name of a servant girl. The name gained popularity during the Renaissance period, particularly in England and the Netherlands.
In the 16th century, Tilly was the name of a Dutch woman, Tilly Arents, who became famous for her involvement in a notorious murder case in Amsterdam. Another notable bearer of the name was Tilly Barne Fowler (1590-1644), an English noblewoman and landowner who played a significant role in the English Civil War.
During the 17th century, the name Tilly was associated with Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly (1559-1632), a renowned military leader in the Thirty Years' War. Although his first name was not Tilly, he was known by this moniker, which became synonymous with his military prowess and success on the battlefield.
Another famous Tilly was Tilly Losch (1903-1975), an Austrian dancer and actress who gained fame in the early 20th century for her performances in Broadway musicals and Hollywood films. She was considered one of the most talented and innovative dancers of her time.
In literature, the name Tilly has been used for various fictional characters, including Tilly Dillard in the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, and Tilly Trotter in the children's book series "The Penderwicks" by Jeanne Birdsall.
People
Tilly + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tilly as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with T
Other first names starting with T with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Tilly: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tilly?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,310 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tilly 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 148,379 US residents.
Is Tilly a common name?
We classify Tilly as "Rare". It ranks above 94.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,395 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tilly most popular?
The single biggest year for Tilly was 2024, when 273 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tilly is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tilly a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tilly 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.