Llyr
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- HLEER
- Origin
- Welsh
- UK rank, 2025
- #3,329 for boys
Llyr is a boys' name of Welsh origin, meaning “the sea”. In 2025 it ranked 3,329th for boys in the UK (6 babies).
What does Llyr mean?
Welsh: related to Irish Lir
“the sea”
In the Mabinogion, Llyr is the father of Bran, Branwen and Manawydan, and he may lie behind Shakespeare's King Lear.
Is Llyr a girl's or a boy's name?
Llyr is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 6 boys in the UK. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Llyr in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #3,329among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 6about 1 in 50,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Risingup 55% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 6 boys in the UK were named Llyr, making it the 3,329th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 4,025th. Its busiest year was 2008, with 17 boys.
Half of all the boys named Llyr in the UK since 1996 were born between 2002 and 2014. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
Among boys in 2025, it was 3,239th in England and Wales.
Llyr in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 6 | #3,329 |
| 2024 | 6 | #3,335 |
| 2023 | 5 | #3,712 |
| 2022 | 3 | #5,017 |
| 2021 | 9 | #2,434 |
| 2020 | 4 | #4,025 |
| 2019 | 7 | #2,878 |
| 2018 | 0 | – |
| 2017 | 6 | #3,191 |
| 2016 | 0 | – |
| 2015 | 5 | #3,527 |
| 2014 | 10 | #2,207 |
| 2013 | 9 | #2,334 |
| 2012 | 12 | #1,956 |
| 2011 | 14 | #1,697 |
| 2010 | 8 | #2,534 |
| 2009 | 7 | #2,679 |
| 2008 | 17 | #1,436 |
| 2007 | 11 | #1,848 |
| 2006 | 7 | #2,386 |
| 2005 | 7 | #2,292 |
| 2004 | 16 | #1,239 |
| 2003 | 9 | #1,723 |
| 2002 | 9 | #1,594 |
| 2001 | 6 | #2,049 |
| 2000 | 9 | #1,503 |
| 1999 | 8 | #1,582 |
| 1998 | 12 | #1,180 |
| 1997 | 10 | #1,319 |
| 1996 | 10 | #1,290 |
Names like Llyr
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Luke Liam Jack James Lewis Billy Owen John Charles Nathan Adam Daniel
More Welsh names
Dylan Winnie Maddox Morgan Idris Reese Bowen Griffin Rhys Gavin Reece Nia Seren Gwendolyn Winifred Meredith
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland) and Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Llyr: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/llyr, updated 20 October 2026.