Qi
- Gender
- Mostly boys
- Say it
- CHEE
- Origin
- Chinese
Qi is a name of Chinese origin. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Qi mean?
Chinese: Mandarin pinyin syllable; meaning depends on the character used
The pinyin syllable stands for many different Chinese characters, such as ones meaning 'fine jade' or 'to open'.
Is Qi a girl's or a boy's name?
In recent years, Qi has been given to girls and boys, mostly boys.
How popular is Qi in the UK?
No boys in the UK were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 2005, with 9 boys.
Qi in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 4 | #4,008 |
| 2012 | 6 | #3,167 |
| 2011 | 6 | #3,038 |
| 2010 | 3 | #4,865 |
| 2009 | 5 | #3,395 |
| 2008 | 5 | #3,305 |
| 2007 | 5 | #3,231 |
| 2006 | 2 | #5,314 |
| 2005 | 9 | #1,957 |
| 2004 | 0 | – |
| 2003 | 0 | – |
| 2002 | 1 | #4,262 |
More Chinese names
Lian, Jia, Mei, Tai, Tian, Jun, Mulan, Yi, Tao, San, Jian, Han, Mian, Bao, Xia, Lin
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, “Qi: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/qi, updated 20 October 2026.