Cecil

Primarily a boy's name · 93% boys

Meaning

Cecil is a given name of Welsh origin. The name was associated with Monmouthshire and derives from the Old Welsh personal name Seisyllt. The name may be related to that of the local Celtic tribe and the successor kingdom. Notable people with the given name include:

From Wikipedia

Cecil first appears in the data in 1880 and has been recorded in 145 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1920 with 2,459 babies (rank #77 that year). In 2024 it was given to 122 boys (rank #1,479). Its popularity has been fairly steady recently.

Numerology of Cecil

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of Cecil yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

5Destiny numberThe free spiritCurious, restless, energised by change.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
5Soul urgeThe free spiritCurious, restless, energised by change.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
9PersonalityThe humanitarianIdealistic, compassionate, thinks in big-picture terms.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

114,554

Total babies (all years)

145

Years in the data

2,459

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Famous people named Cecil

Cecil John Rhodescolonizer · b. 1853
Cecil Frank Powellnuclear physicist · b. 1903
Cecil B. DeMillefilm screenwriter · b. 1881
Cecil Beatonfashion photographer · b. 1904
Cecil Day-Lewisnovelist · b. 1904

Share your Cecil story

Why did you choose this name — or what does it mean to you? Approved stories appear on this page.

More popular boys' names

Names ranked near Cecil in 2024

Other boys' names starting with C

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1880	45	#248
1881	35	#268
1882	53	#225
1883	51	#212
1884	73	#186
1885	87	#154
1886	83	#168
1887	80	#155
1888	96	#158
1889	102	#142
1890	120	#121
1891	108	#126
1892	151	#115
1893	147	#114
1894	175	#102
1895	192	#100
1896	200	#97
1897	216	#84
1898	243	#87
1899	256	#77
1900	344	#76
1901	278	#70
1902	354	#65
1903	332	#66
1904	359	#67
1905	347	#72
1906	368	#68
1907	399	#69
1908	397	#72
1909	432	#72
1910	472	#77
1911	560	#76
1912	1,058	#76
1913	1,276	#74
1914	1,530	#79
1915	2,181	#76
1916	2,181	#80
1917	2,101	#83
1918	2,328	#82
1919	2,300	#78
1920	2,459	#77
1921	2,456	#79
1922	2,336	#85
1923	2,255	#87
1924	2,299	#85
1925	2,297	#87
1926	2,305	#86
1927	2,227	#92
1928	2,005	#97
1929	1,889	#101
1930	1,882	#99
1931	1,769	#102
1932	1,655	#108
1933	1,506	#111
1934	1,596	#111
1935	1,726	#109
1936	1,577	#114
1937	1,635	#114
1938	1,558	#118
1939	1,578	#114
1940	1,589	#117
1941	1,512	#132
1942	1,620	#131
1943	1,697	#132
1944	1,499	#142
1945	1,355	#152
1946	1,404	#159
1947	1,443	#165
1948	1,400	#166
1949	1,318	#173
1950	1,341	#171
1951	1,323	#181
1952	1,327	#185
1953	1,254	#196
1954	1,298	#194
1955	1,228	#205
1956	1,141	#215
1957	1,073	#230
1958	1,010	#249
1959	1,009	#251
1960	959	#256
1961	971	#251
1962	882	#258
1963	823	#266
1964	731	#289
1965	726	#277
1966	678	#284
1967	543	#320
1968	564	#321
1969	552	#330
1970	566	#337
1971	536	#344
1972	475	#354
1973	414	#377
1974	419	#375
1975	348	#417
1976	351	#412
1977	369	#409
1978	352	#417
1979	351	#426
1980	407	#401
1981	320	#464
1982	296	#494
1983	309	#480
1984	299	#483
1985	266	#532
1986	276	#535
1987	250	#575
1988	270	#564
1989	237	#650
1990	231	#664
1991	217	#686
1992	194	#742
1993	196	#747
1994	162	#840
1995	147	#913
1996	153	#885
1997	135	#972
1998	132	#1,023
1999	133	#1,042
2000	130	#1,083
2001	121	#1,145
2002	106	#1,282
2003	101	#1,350
2004	100	#1,415
2005	108	#1,381
2006	107	#1,447
2007	111	#1,449
2008	122	#1,390
2009	88	#1,743
2010	78	#1,853
2011	91	#1,659
2012	97	#1,602
2013	114	#1,447
2014	99	#1,590
2015	114	#1,468
2016	103	#1,587
2017	103	#1,576
2018	113	#1,511
2019	98	#1,653
2020	97	#1,647
2021	114	#1,538
2022	114	#1,558
2023	115	#1,528
2024	122	#1,479