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Ellison

“Variant of Ellis — Benevolent, kind” — Welsh/English origin

Boy's name · #1679 in the US (2025) · Heirloom

Ellison is an heirloom: its strongest era came around 1883, when it ranked #748. It has thinned since but never left the records — about 3,000 boys since 1881, ranked #1679 today. It is also an American family name — about 43,000 people carry it as a surname, according to US census data. About 74% of babies named Ellison in recent years have been girls.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 5 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Ellisons

• Ellison Onizuka — American astronaut from Kealakekua, Kona, Hawaii, first Asian American to reach space, later died in the Space Shuttle Challenger accident
• Ellison D. Smith — American politician (1864–1944)
• Ellison Capers — Confederate Army general (1837–1908)
• Ellison Greenslade — Bahamian police officer
• Ellison Adger Smyth Jr. — American professor, entomologist, ornithologist, scientific collector and football coach (1863-1941)

What Ellisons become

Among 18 notable people named Ellison:

No single standout — notable Ellisons spread across many fields.

Similar names: Ellis · Orin · Eliott · Sloan · Nolen · Walton

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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