Given name & surname · also German
Miles
“one who is merciful”·“a soldier”
Miles is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “one who is merciful” and “a soldier”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “one who is merciful” and “a soldier”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Where it comes from
This spelling has been associated with German and Latin naming traditions. The precise derivation is uncertain.
How it developed
Miles is an affectionate form of Michael.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Miles through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 123,225
- 122,868 boys · 357 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 6,655 babies
- 2025
- 6,085
- #44 for boys · #8,191 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +42%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6,072 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 44 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 41.9% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 13 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (575). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 77,427 as a first name in 2020; 82,573 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.
Miles’s family of names
Miles is an affectionate form of Michael. In Latin usage, Miles has a later derivative in ܡܝܠܣ. In English usage, Miles has an alternative spelling in Myles.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Miles has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Latin roots to each of them.
4 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 15
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Miles
- Miles DavisAmerican jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer (1926–1991)
- Miles TellerAmerican actorborn 1987
- Lil YachtyAmerican rapper and singerborn 1997
- Miles HeizerAmerican actorborn 1994
- Miles RobinsonAmerican soccer playerborn 1997
- Miles Joseph BerkeleyBritish botanist (1803-1889)
- Miles DempseyBritish army officer (1896-1969)
- Miles FisherAmerican film and television actor and musicianborn 1983
- Miles BridgesAmerican basketball player (born 1998)
Characters named Miles: Miles Morales (Marvel Comics), Miles O'Brien (the Star Trek universe), Miles Straume (the American mystery fiction television series Lost), Miles Edgeworth (the Ace Attorney series).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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