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Boy · Latin
Julius
Say it: JOOL-yus
Meaning
Uncertain. The family claimed descent from Iulus, son of Aeneas; scholars have proposed a link to Jupiter. The popular meaning 'youthful' or 'downy-bearded', from Greek ioulos, is a folk etymology.
Disputedsharp disagreement, or a popular meaning that is not supported.
The family name of Caesar, taken up as a given name in Renaissance Italy and widely used in 19th-century Europe and America.
Its wave through time
Timeless: in steady use for over a century
In the United States
- 80,612 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 1912, about 1 in 567 boys
- 960 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- Ancient Rome750 BC to AD 476
- The Renaissance1400 to 1600
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Iulius
| Italian | Giulio |
|---|---|
| Spanish | Julio |
| French | Jules |
| Polish | Juliusz |
| Portuguese | Júlio |
| Russian | Yuliy |
| Romanian | Iuliu |
Famous bearers
- Gaius Julius Caesar, Roman dictator
- Pope Julius II
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- Roman literature and history (Livy, Cicero, Tacitus and others)
- Royal and noble genealogies
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.