Niall is a distinctive choice, ranked #745 in 2025. Your child is likely to be the only Niall in their class.
💎
UK Rank 2025
#745
Ad
About the Name Niall
Niall has seen a notable decline in recent years, dropping 182 places in five years. It was most popular in 1996 at #106 — parents choosing it today are making a deliberately counter-trend decision. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Niall is uncommon in the UK, so your child is very likely to be the only Niall in their class.
⭐ Famous People Named Niall
Niall Ferguson — Sir Niall Campbell Ferguson is a British-American historian who is the Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a senior fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University.
Niall Stanage — Niall Stanage is an Irish journalist and associate editor of the American political newspaper The Hill.
Niall Treacy — Niall Treacy is a British short-track speed skater.
Biographical summaries are shortened from Wikipedia and are used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence; those summaries remain available under that same licence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Niall
Unlikely. With around 46 UK babies named Niall per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Niall in their class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Niall is declining: down 314 places since 2020, to #745 in 2025. It peaked at #106 in 1996.
Niall 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 Niall include: Niall Ferguson, Niall Stanage and Niall Treacy. Short summaries for each appear below.
Niall does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice — your child is unlikely to encounter American Nialls in the wild.
46
UK babies named Niall (2025)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.0
In a school of 600
↓ 314 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Niall
Almost certainly the only Niall in the class
Ad
UK Popularity (1996–2025)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Niall
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Sir Niall Campbell Ferguson is a British-American historian who is the Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a senior fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University.
Niall Noígíallach (pronounced [ˈn̠ʲiːa̯l̪ n̪oːi̯ˈɣʲiːa̯l̪əx]; Old Irish "having nine hostages"), or Niall of the Nine Hostages, was a legendary, and possibly historical, Irish king.
Niall Glúndub mac Áeda (Modern Irish: Niall Glúndubh mac Aodha, 'Niall Black-Knee, son of Áed'; died 14 September 919) was a 10th-century Irish king of the Cenél nEógain and High King of Ireland.
Niall mac Áeda (died 846), called Niall Caille (Niall of the Callan) to distinguish him from his grandson Niall mac Áeda (died 917), was High King of Ireland.
Sir Niall mac Cailein, also known as Neil Campbell or Nigel Campbell, was a nobleman and warrior who spent his life in the service of King Robert the Bruce, His Gaelic name means "Niall, Colin's son" since he was the son of Cailean Mór.