Nil
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- NEEL
- Origin
- Greek
- UK rank, 2025
- #4,276 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #7,883 for girls
New arrival
Nil is a girls' name of Greek origin, meaning “the River Nile”. In 2025 it ranked 4,276th for girls in the UK (5 babies) and 7,883rd for girls in the US (13 babies).
What does Nil mean?
Greek: Turkish name from the River Nile (Greek Neilos, via Arabic Nil)
“the River Nile”
Is Nil a girl's or a boy's name?
Nil is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 5 girls in the UK and 13 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Nil in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #4,276among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 5about 1 in 56,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Rising fastup 400% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 5 girls in the UK were named Nil, making it the 4,276th most popular name for girls. Its busiest year was 2021, with 5 girls.
In 2025, 10 girls in the UK were given Nil or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #2,226, up from #4,276 for this spelling alone.
- Neel 5
- Nil 5
Among girls in 2025, it was 4,200th in England and Wales.
Nil in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #4,276 |
| 2024 | 4 | #4,907 |
| 2023 | 3 | #5,929 |
| 2022 | 5 | #4,168 |
| 2021 | 5 | #4,148 |
How popular is Nil in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #7,883among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 13about 1 in 120,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Risingup 31% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 13 girls in the US were named Nil, making it the 7,883rd most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 15,083rd. Its busiest year was 2017, with 19 girls. It first appears in the records in 2013.
Half of all the girls named Nil in the US since 1880 were born between 2017 and 2023, the years shaded on the chart below.
Nil in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | #7,883 |
| 2024 | 18 | #6,391 |
| 2023 | 16 | #6,917 |
| 2022 | 12 | #8,536 |
| 2021 | 13 | #8,019 |
| 2020 | 5 | #15,083 |
| 2019 | 13 | #8,134 |
| 2018 | 18 | #6,517 |
| 2017 | 19 | #6,283 |
| 2016 | 10 | #10,109 |
| 2015 | 10 | #10,143 |
| 2014 | 6 | #14,552 |
| 2013 | 5 | #16,542 |
Names like Nil
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Prisha Aadhya Saanvi Arya Gurnaaz Nirvi Anvika Navy Navya Jaap Aarvi Aavya
Other spellings of Nil
Names related to Nil
More Greek names
Luca Theodore Sophia George Theo Lucas Sofia Alexander Sebastian Penelope Phoebe Margot Luke Chloe Sophie Zoe
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, “Nil: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/nil, updated 20 October 2026.