Nilay

#11,609 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

House, abode, residence

Nilay has been given to 262 babies in the U.S. since 1974. In 2025 it ranked #11,609 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2006, with 12 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 92% boys, 8% girls all-time.

Babies named Nilay, 2025

1 in 553,000

Nilay over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Nilay over time

In 2025, Nilay went to 45% girls and 55% boys.

19742025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Nilay: meaning, origin, and history

House, abode, residence

Sanskrit

What Nilay means

Nilay means “house, abode, residence”, associated with nilaya.

Dictionary etymologyReferences, data & attribution

Borrowed from Sanskrit निलय (nilaya, “house, abode, residence”).

Excerpt from Wiktionary: Nilay (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Origin, language, and formation

Nilay is used in English, Tagalog and Turkish. Its origins include Sanskrit.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Petronila.

Pronunciation and spelling

In Tagalog, Nilay is pronounced /ˈnilaj/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 240 boys were recorded with the name Nilay between 1974 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 12 in 2006; its best national rank was #4,392 in 1981.

Over 10 years its rank rose, from #11,687 in 2015 to #11,609 in 2025.

In the United States, 22 girls were recorded with the name Nilay between 2009 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 7 in 2023; its best national rank was #13,083 in 2023.

How common is Nilay?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025: 1 in 553,000; 6 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only: 1 in 285,000; <0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025: #11,609; of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size: 382,984 kids; Even odds of a second one

Where Nilay sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%

Class of 30Under 1%

Grade of 100Under 1%

School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 382,984 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Nilay. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Nilays were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Nilay was born before 2005 — so the typical Nilay is around 20 today.

Median birth year: 2005; About 20 years old
Biggest decade: 2000s; 37.9% of all use
Born in the last 25 years: 66.3%; A modern name
Recorded since 1950: 240; People you could plausibly meet

Choose a decade

2000s — 37.9% of all recorded uses (91).

Is Nilay rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago: —; Not ranked then
Rank vs 5 years ago: New entry; Not ranked then
Rank vs 10 years ago: +78; Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago: 1.00×; More babies than then
Share of its own peak: 50.0%; Peak was 2006 (12)
Years since peak: 19; Years
Year-to-year steadiness: Volatile; 31.7% average annual change
Best rank ever: #4,392; 1981

Spellings of Nilay

Nilay is not the most common spelling — Billy is, with 46.2% against Nilay's 0.03%.

Billy46.2%384,233
Nolan16.3%135,505
Riley12.6%105,025
Silas9.1%75,465
Clay4.8%40,252
Milan2.2%18,608
Wiley2.2%18,400
Nicky0.90%7,475

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Nilay around the world

Where Nilay ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

England & Wales
1997–2025
#5,137
in 2025
South Australia
2011–2011
#784
in 2011

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics and Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). ONS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0.

Nilay by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025: #11,609
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: New entry
Best rank ever: #4,392; 1981
Peak year: 2006; 12 that year
First recorded: 1974
Last recorded: 2025
All-time count: 240
Count in 2025: 6

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025: #16,595
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: New entry
Best rank ever: #13,083; 2023
Peak year: 2023; 7 that year
First recorded: 2009
Last recorded: 2025
All-time count: 22
Count in 2025: 5

Names similar to Nilay

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

Nilan Nilson Nilo Ilay Nilesh Niles Findlay Nilton Elay Nils Nilav Nil Nile Nikolay Finlay Macaulay Nilmar Klay Flay Barclay Alay Lay Finnlay Clay

Sibling names for Nilay

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

For a sister

Sydni Sydnie Shyann Abagail Alysa Jacquelin Jazmyne Gabriel

For a brother

Aaden Kale Jarod Keven Zakary Garret Samual Donavon

Explore around Nilay

Top names of 2006, Nilay's peak year The 2000s in full Other names that peaked in 1981 Boys' names starting with N Uncommon Turkish Girl Names