Nameling

Yu

Mostly boys · Japanese

Yu is a name of Japanese origin. In 2025 it ranked 5,065th for boys in the UK (3 babies) and 8,239th for boys in the US (9 babies).

What does Yu mean?

Japanese

Synonym of Yuu; A unisex given name from Japanese.

From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Is Yu a girl's or a boy's name?

In recent years, Yu has been given to girls and boys, mostly boys. In 2025, it was given to 3 girls and 3 boys in the UK and 9 boys in the US.

How popular is Yu in the UK?

Rank in 2025
#5,065among boys
Babies in 2025
3about 1 in 100,000 boys
Five-year trend
Fallingdown 35% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1%chance among 15 boys

In 2025, 3 boys in the UK were named Yu, making it the 5,065th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 4,803rd. Its busiest year was 2009, with 40 boys. 3 girls were also named Yu in 2025 (5,990th for girls).

Half of all the boys named Yu in the UK since 1996 were born between 2008 and 2014, the years shaded on the chart below.

In 2022, 55% of the babies named Yu in the UK were girls.

Among boys in 2025, it was 4,974th in England and Wales.

1996Busiest: 40 in 20092025
Yu in the UK, year by year
YearBoysRank
20253#5,065
20243#5,198
20237#2,965
20225#3,639
20213#4,989
20203#4,803
201912#1,974
20185#3,596
201718#1,490
201612#2,007
201517#1,535
201417#1,511
201324#1,178
201223#1,234
201127#1,077
201034#927
200940#797
200836#854
200716#1,458
200619#1,207
200516#1,326
200410#1,688
20037#2,054
20020–
20010–
20005#2,237
19990–
19981#3,884
19970–
19963#2,949

How popular is Yu in the US?

Rank in 2025
#8,239among boys
Babies in 2025
9about 1 in 190,000 boys
Five-year trend
Too rare to calltoo few babies to tell
Same name in a class
under 1%chance among 15 boys

In 2025, 9 boys in the US were named Yu, making it the 8,239th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 7,029th. Its busiest year was 2002, with 17 boys. It first appears in the records in 1969.

Half of all the boys named Yu in the US since 1880 were born between 1991 and 2013, the years shaded on the chart below.

1969Busiest: 17 in 20022025
Yu in the US, year by year
YearBoysRank
20259#8,239
20245#12,341
20236#10,815
202211#7,256
202110#7,582
202011#7,029
201910#7,638
201811#7,132
20177#9,691
201611#7,152
20159#8,035
20148#8,775
201310#7,532
20129#8,152
20116#10,801
20107#9,686
20096#10,989
20087#9,864
200712#6,618
200613#6,090
20059#7,633
200412#6,132
200314#5,265
200217#4,496
20016#9,236
200013#5,290
199910#6,036
19989#6,308
19978#6,612
19968#6,489
19959#5,922
199413#4,531
199314#4,220
19929#5,652
199110#5,088
199013#4,161
198910#4,805
198810#4,445
19876#6,083
198614#3,265
198512#3,596
198412#3,457
19837#4,904
19820–
19815#6,260
19800–
19790–
19786#5,056
19770–
19765#5,584
19750–
19740–
19735#5,099
19720–
19710–
19700–
19695#4,403

Names like Yu

Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.

Names related to Yu

More Japanese names