William

“will and protection”

Boy’s name, of Germanic origin. Lire en français

Births per 10,000 babies born in France, from 1986 to 2025 (INSEE).

Meaning and origin of William

William means “will and protection” and is of Germanic origin.

It peaked in 1999.
Over recent years, William has been stable (−3.9% a year).
In schools of 200 children born in those years, you would find one William every 5.7 schools, all spellings combined.

William ranks 8^th in Ontario (Canada), 9^th in United States and 15^th in New Zealand, against 122^nd in France.

New ZealandDIA · 2023-25
15^th boys’ name404 babies in 3 years1 boy in 122−5.5% a year
Ontario (Canada)ServiceOntario · 2022-24
8^th boys’ name1,324 babies in 3 years1 boy in 128−6.8% a year
British Columbia (Canada)BC Vital Statistics · 2021-23
16^th boys’ name308 babies in 3 years1 boy in 145−8.5% a year
United StatesSSA · 2023-25
9^th boys’ name31,865 babies in 3 years1 boy in 161−4.2% a year
England and WalesONS · 2023-25
28^th boys’ name4,517 babies in 3 years1 boy in 183−8.9% a year
Northern IrelandNISRA · 2023-25
65^th boys’ name119 babies in 3 years1 boy in 214−1.1% a year
ScotlandNRS · 2023-25
56^th boys’ name249 babies in 3 years1 boy in 241−8.1% a year
IrelandCSO · 2023-25
72^nd boys’ name262 babies in 3 years1 boy in 274−6.5% a year

Official figures from each country, over their latest three published years. Counted as written: other spellings are counted apart.

Births 2023–2025. At school they sound the same: this total tells you whether your child is likely to share the name.

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