girl's name
Jillian
JIL-ee-un
- Origin English
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 3
- Letters 7
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 91,014
Northern Ireland
#413
1999 births
Jillian means youthful, and it descends from the same Roman family name as July — Julius, Julia, Jill and Jillian all come from the gens that claimed descent from Venus. It holds 85,879 lifetime births in our records.
- Jillian is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1982, when 3,070 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 18,731 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1944.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Jillian over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1940s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1940s | 37 |
| 1950s | 86 |
| 1960s | 333 |
| 1970s | 4,685 |
| 1980s | 25,574 |
| 1990s | 19,761 |
| 2000s | 22,861 |
| 2010s | 8,730 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,357 |
What Jillian means
Jillian means youthful, or downy-bearded, carried from Julia. The Roman family name has two proposed readings and neither is fully established. The sense passes into the modern name unchanged.
Where Jillian comes from
Jillian is an English elaboration of Jill, itself a short form of Gillian, from the Latin Juliana — a feminine of Julius. The Roman gens name is read either as downy-bearded or as devoted to Jove, and the family claimed descent from Iulus, son of Aeneas and grandson of Venus. Gillian was pronounced with a hard G in medieval English, which is why Jill and Gill both exist. The youthful gloss comes from a later association with iuvenis.
Jillian in use
Jillian peaked in the United States in 1982, when 3,070 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in three of the seven markets we track — 1,271st in the United States on 177 births and 7493rd in England and Wales — across 91,014 lifetime births. Our records carry it from 1936.
How popular is Jillian?
In 2025, Jillian was given to 177 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Jillian is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Jillian
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Jillian also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Jillian over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Jillian
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Jillian in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Jillian
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Jillian — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Jillian
What does the name Jillian mean?
Youthful or downy-bearded, carried from Julia — neither reading is fully established.
Is Jillian related to Julius?
Yes — both descend from the Roman gens name Julius, as does July.
Is it Jillian or Gillian?
The same name. Gillian was pronounced with a hard G in medieval English, which is why both exist.
How popular is Jillian?
1271st in the United States, down from a 1982 peak of 3,070 births.
Is Jillian a girl's or a boy's name?
Jillian is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Jillian?
Jillian has 3 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Jillian?
Jillian is usually shortened to Jill.
Is Jillian a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Jillian currently ranks #853 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.