Total births
140
Boys' name · since 1913
Lyell
Since 1913, U.S. Social Security records show 140 babies named Lyell, peaking in 1920. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- 140
- total births
- 1913–1991
- years on record
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 41%
- born in that decade
Lyell is not among the current top-ranked boys names; 140 have been recorded since 1913.
Lyell has 140 recorded births among boys since 1913, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1913 to 1991.
- 140 total births
- 1913–1991 years on record
- 1920s peak decade
- 41% born in that decade
Data updated Jul 2026
The verdict
140 boys have been named Lyell since 1913, peaking in the 1920s, last recorded in 1991.
- 140
- total births
- 1913–1991
- years on record
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 41%
- born in that decade
1920s
Peak decade
41% of everyone ever named Lyell was born in this single decade.
1920
Single peak year
12 babies were named Lyell in 1920 - its busiest year on record.
Lyell's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Lyell's full recorded timeline at 1926, 49% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 51% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1914, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1920 peak of 12 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Lyell at a glance
Last recorded 1991Peak year
1920
Current rank
Unranked
Active since
1913
Lyell popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1913–1991
- Peak year (1920)
- 12
- Annual births at peak, across 79 years of records
Lyell by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1920s was Lyell's strongest decade.
57 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 41% of all-time use.
Lyell births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s
1910s
30 births
- 1920s
1920s
57 births
- 1930s
1930s
27 births
- 1940s 10
1940s
10 births
- 1950s 6
1950s
6 births
- 1960s 5
1960s
5 births
- 1990s 5
1990s
5 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 57 births (41% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Lyell? ▼
140 babies have been named Lyell since 1913. It was last recorded in 1991. The peak year was 1920 with 12 births.
When was Lyell most popular? ▼
Lyell was most popular in the 1920s decade with 57 total births. The single peak year was 1920.
How long has the name Lyell been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Lyell since 1913 -- 79 years through the most recent 1991 data.
What to do with Lyell's data
- Lyell's decade-level peak was the 1920s (57 total births); usage has since declined to 5 in the 1990s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Lyell
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Data Sources
Data as of July 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1913–1991 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Lyell: Baby Name Since 1913 - 140 Births, Peak 1920." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/lyell. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Lyell draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026.