There used to be a clear distinction between a name and a nickname. Charlie was short for Charles. Rosie was short for Rosemary or Rose. Billie was short for William or Wilhelmina.
That distinction has almost entirely collapsed.
In 2024, Charlie is the 167th most popular girls name in America — not as a nickname for Charlotte or Charlene, but as a standalone given name. Evie (#131) is not on the birth certificate as Evelyn; it is the name. Rosie (#213) is registered as Rosie, not Rose. Billie (#303) is Billie, not Wilhelmina.
The -ie/-y ending has become its own naming category: warm, friendly, diminutive in form but complete in identity.
The data
| Name | Sex | 1994 Rank | 2014 Rank | 2024 Rank | 2024 Babies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evie | Girls | ~#800 | #326 | #131 | 2,805 |
| Charlie | Girls | ~#1,200 | #283 | #167 | 2,234 |
| Rosie | Girls | #645 | #423 | #213 | 1,644 |
| Ellie | Girls | #499 | #64 | #27 | 9,428 |
| Millie | Girls | #574 | #511 | #212 | 1,650 |
| Billie | Girls | #534 | #756 | #303 | 1,130 |
| Hattie | Girls | ~#1,400 | #698 | #352 | 952 |
| Nellie | Girls | ~#1,600 | #836 | #538 | 623 |
| Winnie | Girls | ~#1,500 | #820 | #468 | 719 |
| Frankie | Girls | ~#1,000 | #666 | #391 | 862 |
Ellie: the -ie name that took over
Ellie — Girls #27, 9,428 babies in 2024.
Ellie is the dominant -ie name in America — #27 with nearly 9,500 babies. It's the nickname form of Eleanor, Elena, or Ellen, but most Ellies born in 2024 are registered simply as Ellie.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #499 | 428 |
| 2004 | #173 | 1,915 |
| 2010 | #83 | 4,534 |
| 2014 | #64 | 5,797 |
| 2018 | #33 | 8,127 |
| 2022 | #24 | 9,821 |
| 2024 | #27 | 9,428 |
Ellie peaked near #24 in 2022 and may be beginning a slow decline. At nearly 10,000 babies per year, it's crossed from distinctive into very common. The character Ellie in The Last of Us (HBO, 2023) may extend its run, but the name is probably near its ceiling.
Evie: the breakout of the decade
Evie — Girls #131, 2,805 babies in 2024.
Evie (from Evelyn or Eva) has been one of the fastest-rising names of the 2020s. In 2014 it was #326; a decade later it's #131 and still climbing.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | ~#700 | ~330 |
| 2010 | #487 | 591 |
| 2014 | #326 | 1,004 |
| 2018 | #194 | 1,835 |
| 2022 | #133 | 2,750 |
| 2024 | #131 | 2,805 |
Evie benefits from the Evelyn revival (Evelyn is #10 for girls in 2024) — Evie is the natural nickname, and many parents prefer the warmth of the diminutive to the formality of the full name. It's also just a beautiful two-syllable sound: E-vie, simple and melodic.
Charlie: the gender-crossing success story
Charlie — Girls #167, 2,234 babies; Boys #231, 1,522 babies in 2024.
Charlie has become one of the rare names that works genuinely well for both sexes without either reading as primarily male or female. For girls especially, it's become a standalone given name rather than a Charlotte nickname.
| Year | Girls Rank | Boys Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | ~#1,200 | #207 |
| 2004 | #576 | #263 |
| 2014 | #283 | #224 |
| 2018 | #218 | #225 |
| 2024 | #167 | #231 |
Charlie for girls has overtaken Charlie for boys — a true gender crossover (see gender-shift-names). The Princess of Wales (née Kate) naming her son Prince Charlie (formally Charles) in 2023 gave the name a royal boost on both sides of the Atlantic.
Rosie: the warmest comeback
Rosie — Girls #213, 1,644 babies in 2024.
Rosie has the warmest sound in this set — optimistic, cheerful, associated with rosy cheeks and rosy outlooks. Its resurgence is part of the broader Victorian botanical name revival (see names-meaning-earth and the flower names from flower-names).
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #645 | 365 |
| 2004 | #538 | 541 |
| 2014 | #423 | 737 |
| 2018 | #304 | 1,075 |
| 2022 | #210 | 1,660 |
| 2024 | #213 | 1,644 |
Rosie the Riveter gave the name cultural resilience through the 20th century. Rosie as a children's book character, Rosie O'Donnell, and various Rosies in British culture (Rosie and Jim, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) have kept it visible.
The Victorian -ie revival: Hattie, Nellie, Millie, Winnie
Some of the most interesting movers in this category are Victorian nicknames that were used as standalone names in the 19th and early 20th centuries, declined sharply in the mid-20th century, and are now returning.
Hattie — #352 (2024): Harriet's nickname, was common in the 1880s-1910s, nearly disappeared, now climbing back.
Millie — #212 (2024): From Millicent or Mildred — the latter is an unlikely source, but Millie has become completely free of that association.
Nellie — #538 (2024): From Eleanor or Helen — a classic that still reads as slightly antique but is clearly rising.
Winnie — #468 (2024): From Winifred — a gorgeous Welsh name that most parents have given up on in favor of the nickname.
Frankie — #391 (2024): From Francesca or Frances — one of the stronger gender-neutral -ie names, rising rapidly.
All of these are following the same skip-generation pattern — they're old enough that they no longer belong to any living generation's parents, which frees them for reuse.
Why -ie names now?
The -ie/-y ending communicates something specific: warmth, approachability, and a certain unpretentiousness. In an era of elaborate, formal names (Persephone, Maximilian, Evangeline), the -ie names offer a counterpoint — friendly, unguarded, human.
They also carry the framing of childhood joy. Rosie, Evie, Winnie, Billie — these names sound like happy children in storybooks. For parents who want names that feel joyful rather than ambitious, this is powerful.
The related nickname-names trend covers similar ground — the broader category of names that function as nicknames regardless of whether they end in -ie.