Eliot: meaning “Jehovah is my God”, origin & popularity

Meaning & origin

What it means

Eliot is a variant of Elliott. In English use, Elliott carries the interpretation “Jehovah is my God.”

Explained through its name family

Where it comes from

Eliot comes from Hebrew.

Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)

How it developed

In English use, Eliot is used as a spelling variant of Elliot.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1905. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Eliot has an alternative spelling in Elliot. The history of Elliot gives this family its wider story. Elliot’s naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.

Combines direct and name-family evidence

Eliot through the years

Babies since 1880: 8,465; 7,892 boys · 573 girls
Most popular year: 2012; 239 babies
2025: 149; #1,403 for boys · #6,182 for girls
2021–25 vs 2016–20: −23%; Easing

Boys Girls

Eliot in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1905–2025, per million births of each sex. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

Boys, girls and both

The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 88% boys.

Boys Girls

Five-year rolling share of U.S. births. Blank stretches had too few births to read.

Where it’s given

Most at home inMassachusetts, Tennessee, North Carolina

FewerMore, relative to births Not published

2025 births by state of birth. Tiles are equal-sized so small states stay visible. Highest rates: Massachusetts (5), Tennessee (5), North Carolina (7), Illinois (6), Ohio (6).

By the numbers

In 2025, this name appeared in 130 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,403 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 15.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 216 in 2012. It also appeared in 19 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (19). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 6,976 as a first name in 2020; 693 as a surname in 2020.

From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.

Eliot’s family of names

Eliot has an alternative spelling in Elliot. In Swedish usage, Eliot has a related form in Elliot. Eliot has a related form in Elliott.

Walk Eliot’s family in the name graph

Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Around the world

Eliot has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.

8 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 7

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Spellings & scripts 2

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

Across languages 2

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

People named Eliot

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Similar names

If you love Eliot, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

Hebrew · Biblical

Sibling ideas

Names that share Eliot’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Eliot

A sister for Eliot

Your shortlist

Eliot