Briony
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- BRY-o-nee
- Origin
- English
- UK rank, 2025
- #3,776 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #14,937 for girls
Briony is a girls' name of English origin, meaning “bryony, a climbing plant”. In 2025 it ranked 3,776th for girls in the UK (6 babies) and 14,937th for girls in the US (5 babies).
What does Briony mean?
English: English plant name, from Greek bryonia
“bryony, a climbing plant”
Briony Tallis is the central character of Ian McEwan's novel Atonement.
Is Briony a girl's or a boy's name?
Briony is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 6 girls in the UK and 5 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Briony in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 3,776th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 6 about 1 in 46,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Falling down 42% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 6 girls in the UK were named Briony, making it the 3,776th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,407th. Its busiest year was 2000, with 118 girls.
Half of all the girls named Briony in the UK since 1996 were born between 1998 and 2007. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier girls aren't counted.
In 2025, 19 girls in the UK were given Briony or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,417, up from #3,776 for this spelling alone.
- Bryony 13
- Briony 6
Among girls in 2025, it was 3,704th in England and Wales.
Briony in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 6 | #3,776 |
| 2024 | 5 | #4,253 |
| 2023 | 11 | #2,481 |
| 2022 | 7 | #3,347 |
| 2021 | 10 | #2,658 |
| 2020 | 11 | #2,407 |
| 2019 | 13 | #2,157 |
| 2018 | 14 | #2,088 |
| 2017 | 14 | #2,099 |
| 2016 | 13 | #2,224 |
| 2015 | 17 | #1,813 |
| 2014 | 16 | #1,895 |
| 2013 | 18 | #1,727 |
| 2012 | 26 | #1,346 |
| 2011 | 27 | #1,272 |
| 2010 | 27 | #1,262 |
| 2009 | 22 | #1,411 |
| 2008 | 36 | #963 |
| 2007 | 43 | #818 |
| 2006 | 38 | #853 |
| 2005 | 50 | #681 |
| 2004 | 62 | #560 |
| 2003 | 66 | #529 |
| 2002 | 82 | #435 |
| 2001 | 89 | #400 |
| 2000 | 118 | #324 |
| 1999 | 102 | #356 |
| 1998 | 115 | #342 |
| 1997 | 111 | #343 |
| 1996 | 117 | #334 |
How popular is Briony in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 14,937th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 5 about 1 in 320,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Too rare to call too few babies to tell
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 5 girls in the US were named Briony, making it the 14,937th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 15,083rd. Its busiest year was 2011, with 16 girls. It first appears in the records in 1977.
Half of all the girls named Briony in the US since 1880 were born between 1988 and 2017, the years shaded on the chart below.
Briony in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #14,937 |
| 2024 | 0 | – |
| 2023 | 10 | #9,611 |
| 2022 | 5 | #15,300 |
| 2021 | 8 | #11,141 |
| 2020 | 5 | #15,083 |
| 2019 | 11 | #9,106 |
| 2018 | 7 | #12,459 |
| 2017 | 8 | #11,611 |
| 2016 | 6 | #14,326 |
| 2015 | 9 | #10,861 |
| 2014 | 10 | #10,124 |
| 2013 | 5 | #16,542 |
| 2012 | 14 | #8,204 |
| 2011 | 16 | #7,432 |
| 2010 | 7 | #13,442 |
| 2009 | 11 | #9,971 |
| 2008 | 7 | #13,827 |
| 2007 | 8 | #12,671 |
| 2006 | 0 | – |
| 2005 | 0 | – |
| 2004 | 7 | #12,754 |
| 2003 | 0 | – |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 0 | – |
| 2000 | 5 | #15,024 |
| 1999 | 0 | – |
| 1998 | 0 | – |
| 1997 | 0 | – |
| 1996 | 0 | – |
| 1995 | 0 | – |
| 1994 | 0 | – |
| 1993 | 0 | – |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 6 | #11,501 |
| 1990 | 0 | – |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 7 | #9,239 |
| 1987 | 0 | – |
| 1986 | 0 | – |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 8 | #7,396 |
| 1983 | 6 | #9,013 |
| 1982 | 11 | #5,909 |
| 1981 | 8 | #7,407 |
| 1980 | 11 | #5,911 |
| 1979 | 5 | #10,208 |
| 1978 | 0 | – |
| 1977 | 5 | #9,650 |
Nicknames for Briony
- Bri 10 girls in the US in 2025
Names like Briony
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Cassidy, Caoimhe, Keira, Teagan, Ffion, Bree, Caragh, Eowyn, Briar, Kennedy, Eilidh, Ocean
Other spellings of Briony
Names related to Briony
Bronwyn, Bronya, Briany, Brianny, Brionna, Brina, Brinn, Brin
More English names
Lily, Evelyn, Hudson, Ivy, Harper, Grace, Violet, Willow, Daisy, Poppy, Riley, Oakley, Mason, Cooper, Ruby, Hallie
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Briony: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/briony, updated 20 October 2026.