Cyril is a distinctive choice, ranked #1952 in 2024. Your child is likely to be the only Cyril in their class.
💎
UK Rank 2024
#1952
About the Name Cyril
Cyril is climbing rapidly up the charts, having climbed 276 places in just five years. Its best recorded rank was #1457 in 2008 — and current momentum suggests it could challenge that mark again. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Cyril is distinctive enough that your child will likely be the only one in both their class and their school — standing out on every register.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Cyril
Unlikely. With around 12 UK babies named Cyril per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Cyril in his class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Cyril is currently rising in popularity in the UK, up 276 places over the last five years to #1952 in 2024. If this trend continues, it will become more common in classrooms over the next decade.
Cyril is a distinctive choice sitting outside the mainstream UK top names. Parents choosing less common names often find their children appreciate the individuality as they grow up, rarely needing to add an initial to distinguish themselves.
Notable people named Cyril include: Cyril Raffaelli — Cyril Raffaelli, sometimes credited as Cyril Xavier Cuenel Raffaelli and Cyril Quenel-Raffaelli, is a French traceur, martial artist and stuntman.; Cyril Kongo — Cyril Kongo, also known as Kongo, was born in 1969 as Cyril Phan in Toulouse, France.; Cyril Ramaphosa — Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa is a South African businessman and politician serving as the president of South Africa since 2018..
Cyril does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice — your child is unlikely to encounter American Cyrils in the wild.
12
UK babies named Cyril (2024)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.0
In a school of 600
↑ 276 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Cyril
Likely around 1 other Cyril in the class
UK Popularity (1996–2024)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Cyril
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa is a South African businessman and politician serving as the president of South Africa since 2018. A former anti-apartheid activist and trade union leader, Ramaphosa is also the president of the African National Congress (ANC).
Sir Cyril Richard Smith was a British Liberal Party and Liberal Democrat politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Rochdale from 1972 to 1992. Smith was first active in local politics as a Liberal in 1945 before switching to Labour in 1950; he served as a Labour councillor in Rochdale, Lancashire, from 1950 and became mayor in 1966.
Cyril of Jerusalem (Greek: Κύριλλος Α΄ Ἱεροσολύμων, Kýrillos A΄ Hierosolýmōn; Latin: Cyrillus Hierosolymitanus; c. 313 – 386) was a theologian of the Early Church.
Patriarch Cyril (Bulgarian: Патриарх Кирил; secular name Konstantin Markov Konstantinov [Bulgarian: Константин Марков Константинов]; January 3, 1901 – March 7, 1971) was the first Patriarch of the restored Bulgarian Patriarchate. Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, to a family of Aromanian descent, he adopted his religious name of Cyril in the St.
Cyril Tourneur was an English soldier, diplomat and dramatist who wrote The Atheist's Tragedy; another (and better-known) play, The Revenger's Tragedy, formerly ascribed to him, is now more generally attributed to Thomas Middleton.