Thirty years of Liam
Liam in numbers
Liam peaked in 1996 with 5,802 boys and has fallen since, to 763 in 2025. Its biggest three-year fall came between 1996 and 1999, from 5,802 to 4,350. It ranked 10th in 1996 and ranks 68th now. On average it was given to 4,595 boys a year in the late 1990s, 2,749 in the 2000s, 1,098 in the 2010s and 732 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year+2%749 to 763
- 5 years+6%721 to 763
- 10 years-9%836 to 763
- 20 years-68%2,390 to 763
- Since 1996-87%5,802 to 763
- Total, 1996 to 202561,245boys
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 68 · ONS · 749 in 2024
Rank 51 · NRS · 93 in 2024
Rank 44 · NISRA · 49 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 68 | 763 | +2% | 1 in 394 |
| 2024 | 70 | 749 | +2% | 1 in 407 |
| 2023 | 71 | 735 | +0% | 1 in 412 |
| 2022 | 76 | 735 | +7% | 1 in 423 |
| 2021 | 86 | 690 | -4% | 1 in 464 |
| 2020 | 79 | 721 | -10% | 1 in 436 |
| 2019 | 74 | 798 | +9% | 1 in 412 |
| 2018 | 85 | 731 | +1% | 1 in 462 |
| 2017 | 91 | 723 | +4% | 1 in 481 |
| 2016 * | 97 | 698 | -17% | 1 in 510 |
| 2015 | 81 | 836 | -7% | 1 in 428 |
| 2014 | 76 | 902 | -7% | 1 in 396 |
| 2013 | 67 | 973 | -29% | 1 in 368 |
| 2012 | 50 | 1,374 | -19% | 1 in 272 |
| 2011 | 44 | 1,690 | -25% | 1 in 220 |
| 2010 | 33 | 2,253 | -19% | 1 in 165 |
| 2009 | 24 | 2,784 | -7% | 1 in 130 |
| 2008 | 22 | 2,986 | +24% | 1 in 122 |
| 2007 | 27 | 2,401 | +16% | 1 in 148 |
| 2006 | 32 | 2,063 | -14% | 1 in 166 |
| 2005 | 28 | 2,390 | -6% | 1 in 138 |
| 2004 | 30 | 2,533 | -6% | 1 in 130 |
| 2003 | 29 | 2,683 | -8% | 1 in 119 |
| 2002 | 23 | 2,927 | +1% | 1 in 105 |
| 2001 | 24 | 2,901 | -24% | 1 in 105 |
| 2000 | 19 | 3,825 | -12% | 1 in 81 |
| 1999 | 17 | 4,350 | +25% | 1 in 73 |
| 1998 | 24 | 3,486 | -27% | 1 in 93 |
| 1997 | 15 | 4,743 | -18% | 1 in 69 |
| 1996 | 10 | 5,802 | 1 in 57 |
* ONS’s boys’ 2016 file repeats the October total as September, so the 2016 births total is about 932 too low and 1 in X for 2016 is slightly too low. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Liam
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Liam is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
Liam is in our lists: Short baby names.