Meaning and history
Liam is an Irish short form of William that became popular in the United Kingdom in the 1980s and later spread elsewhere in Europe and the Americas. It has been the top-ranked boys’ name in the United States since 2017. Notable bearers include Irish actor Liam Neeson (1952–), British musician Liam Gallagher (1972–), and Australian actor Liam Hemsworth (1990–).
20062006: 4,514 births, rank #98
2007: 5,141 births, rank #89
2008: 5,982 births, rank #75
2009: 8,567 births, rank #49
2010: 10,933 births, rank #30
20112011: 13,450 births, rank #15
2012: 16,824 births, rank #6
2013: 18,153 births, rank #3
2014: 18,488 births, rank #2
2015: 18,410 births, rank #2
20162016: 18,277 births, rank #2
2017: 18,874 births, rank #1
2018: 19,977 births, rank #1
2019: 20,631 births, rank #1
2020: 19,865 births, rank #1
20212021: 20,424 births, rank #1
2022: 20,579 births, rank #1
2023: 20,904 births, rank #1
2024: 22,252 births, rank #1
20252025: 20,818 births, rank #1
Liam's rise is a striking part of the modern US rankings. It rose from #140 in 2000 and entered its current top-10 run in 2012. It has held the #1 position for boys since 2017. Its highest annual birth count came in 2024, with 22,252 births.