Willie
Pronounced W IH1 L IY0 (ARPABET)
- 2 syllables
- Peaked 1947
- 145 years in use
- 3 spellings
How popular is Willie?
Willie is a name given to both boys and girls, and has been in the record since the data starts in 1880. It has been given to 600,693 children — the 77th most common boys' name on record.
It has been slipping, down 47% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1947, when 8,022 children were given it.
Three other spellings are counted in that total — Willy, Willey and Willi — because they are pronounced identically.
Roughly 24% of children named Willie are girls, so the split is a real one rather than a rounding error.
Spelling variants
These spellings sound identical to Willie and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.
- Willy
- Willey
- Willi
Nicknames
Willie is itself a short form of William.
Characteristics
- 2 syllables
Phonetic detail
- Pronunciations:
- W IH1 L IY0
- Stress pattern:
- 10
- Syllables:
- 2
Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.
Names like Willie
Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.
Sibling names for Willie
Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.
Frequently asked questions
- How popular is the name Willie?
- Willie ranks 77th among boys' names in US records, with 600,693 births since 1880. Over the past decade it accounts for 2,445.
- Is Willie a unisex name?
- Yes. About 24% of children given the name are girls, which is a genuine split rather than a rounding error.
- When was Willie most popular?
- 1947, when 8,022 children were given the name. It has been in use for 145 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
- How else is Willie spelled?
- Willy, Willey, Willi. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.