Unisex name · since 1967
Telly
Telly has 1,527 recorded births since 1967 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1974 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #3,910 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 1,527
- born since 1967
- 1970s
- peak decade
Telly sits outside today's top ranks for boys, with 1,527 recorded since 1967.
Telly has 1,527 recorded births among boys since 1967, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1970s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1967 to 2024.
- #3,910 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- 1,527 born since 1967
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Telly ranks #3,910 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 1,527 born since 1967, peaking in the 1970s.
- #3,910 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 1,527
- born since 1967
- 1970s
- peak decade
Telly's 1,527 recorded births place it above 91.4% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
21 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Georgia.
Telly's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Telly's full recorded timeline at 1996, 19% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 81% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1967, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1974 peak of 294 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Telly popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1967–2024
- Peak year (1974)
- 294
- Annual births at peak, across 58 years of records
Telly popularity over time - girls
82 total births recorded since 1969 (Telly as girls' name)
Telly by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (1,044 births, 68% of the file).
1970s was Telly's strongest decade.
1,044 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 68% of all-time use.
Telly births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1960s 13
1960s
13 births
- 1970s
1970s
1,044 births
- 1980s 110
1980s
110 births
- 1990s 145
1990s
145 births
- 2000s 127
2000s
127 births
- 2010s 67
2010s
67 births
- 2020s 21
2020s
21 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 1,044 births (68% of all-time use).
How Telly compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Telly's total volume
Telly by state
Where Telly concentrates geographically, total births since 1967
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Georgia | | 108 | 7.1% |
| #2 | North Carolina | | 81 | 5.3% |
| #3 | South Carolina | | 70 | 4.6% |
| #4 | Louisiana | | 69 | 4.5% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 67 | 4.4% |
| #6 | Florida | | 55 | 3.6% |
| #7 | Texas | | 43 | 2.8% |
| #8 | New York | | 37 | 2.4% |
108 of 1,527 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 21 reporting states.
Telly appears in 21 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Telly? ▼
Where does Telly sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Telly most popular? ▼
Where is Telly most popular? ▼
Is Telly a unisex name? ▼
How long has the name Telly been used? ▼
What names are similar to Telly? ▼
What to do with Telly's data
- Telly's decade-level peak was the 1970s (1,044 total births); usage has since declined to 21 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Georgia records the most Tellys (108 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Georgia names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Telly
Nearby Names Like Telly
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Telly
Compare Telly side by side: Telly vs Telvin Telly vs Telford Telly vs Tellis
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Telly: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1974)
Similar record span (~57 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 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, 1967–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
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 Telly 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 August 2026.