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Liam

Irish short form of William
"resolute protection"
Madison Dresler
By Madison Dresler
Updated Sat Jan 18 2025

Liam Origin and Meaning

The name Liam is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "resolute protection".

Liam is the top boys' name in the US, holding the Number 1 spot for the past seven years and also ranking as one of the most popular boys' names around the western world.

Liam originated as a short form of Uilliam, the Irish variation of William. William is an English name from Germanic roots that was brought to Ireland when the British fled England following the Norman Conquest. The Irish began using English names, including William, which led to the development of Uilliam and its short form, Liam.

Internationally, Liam is enjoying great popularity not only in the U.S. and its native Ireland, but in countries as diverse as Italy and Israel, Chile and Croatia. If you're looking for a boys' name that will easily translate across many languages and cultures, you can't do better than Liam.

Irish-born actor Liam Neeson was instrumental in driving Liam up the charts, as was former Oasis member Liam (born William) Gallagher, and, more recently, One Direction member Liam Payne. Celebrities who have chosen Liam for their sons include Tori Spelling, Calista Flockhart, Rod Stewart, Kevin Costner and Craig Ferguson.

Jaunty and richly textured, Liam holds solidly to the title of most popular boys' name starting with the letter L.

# 1 in the US

Liam Rank in US Top 1000

# 21 on Nameberry

Liam Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Liam Popularity

Famous People Named Liam

  • Liam John Neeson
    Irish actor
  • Liam Hemsworth
    Australian actor
  • Liam James Payne
    English singer of group One Direction
  • Liam Cosgrave
    former Taoiseach (Prime Minister of Ireland)
  • Liam Fox
    British politician; former Secretary of State for Defense
  • Liam Brady
    Irish footballer
  • Liam Padraic Aiken
    American actor
  • Liam Cunningham
    Irish actor
  • Liam Dryden
    Scottish internet personality, actor, and musician
  • William John Paul "Liam" Gallagher
    English singer
  • Liam James
    Canadian actor
  • Liam Lynch (born William Patrick Niederst)
    American musician and writer
  • Liam Aylward
    Irish politician
  • Liam Dominic Byrne
    British politician
  • Liam McIntyre
    Australian actor
  • Liam Christopher O'Brien
    American actor
  • Liam O'Flaherty
    Irish novelist
  • William "Liam" Clancy
    Irish folk singer
  • Liam Mullane Finn
    New Zealand singer,songwriter
  • Liam Garrigan
    English actor
  • Liam Howlett
    English composer, DJ, and record producer
  • Liam Patrick McKenna
    Irish singer and TV personality
  • Liam Thomas O'Donnell
    American actor
  • Liam Kyle Sullivan
    American comedian, actor, and musician
  • Liam Jones
    Australian rules footballer
  • Liam Waite (born Liam Owen East)
    American actor
  • Liam Andrew Wright
    English film director
  • Liam Wilson
    American bassist
  • Liam Walker Dunaway O'Neill (b. 1980)
    son of actress Faye Dunaway
  • Liam McAlister Stewart (b. 1994)
    son of singer Rod Stewart
  • Liam Timothy Costner (b. 1996)
    son of actor Kevin Costner and Bridget Rooney
  • Liam Flockhart (b. 2001)
    son of actors Calista Flockhart and Harrison Ford
  • Liam Erixon (b. 2002)
    son of singer Jessica Andersson and Jonas Erixon
  • Liam Golan (b. 2003)
    son of singer Eyal Golan and beauty queen Ilanit Levi
  • Liam Aaron McDermott (b. 2007)
    son of actors Tori Spelling & Dean McDermott
  • Liam Lucca (adopted 2007)
    son of singer Tony Lucca
  • Liam Knight (b. 2008)
    son of actor Wayne Knight
  • Liam Allen Peterson (b. 2010)
    son of TV personalities Emily McKenzie and Daniel Peterson of "16 and Pregnant"
  • Liam James Ferguson (b. 2011)
    son of TV personality Craig Ferguson
  • Liam Weatherly (b. 2013)
    son of actor Michael Weatherly
  • Liam Choupo
    Moting (b. 2013), son of footballer Eric Maxim Choupo,Moting
  • Liam da Silva (b. 2015)
    son of footballer Marcelo
  • Liam Henri Hartmut
    Prince of Nassau (b.2016), son of Prince Félix and Princess Claire of Luxembourg.
  • Liam Parker (b. 2016)
    son of French pro basketball player Tony Parker
  • Liam James Tell (b.2017)
    son of personality Lauren Conrad.
  • Liam Patrick Heneghan
    YouTube gamer
  • Liam Charles Antetokounmpo (b. 2020)
    son of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Mariah Riddlesprigger

Liam in Pop Culture

  • Liam Stewart
    character in Alexandra Bracken's series "The Darkest Minds"
  • Liam Lupo
    character on TV's "Switched at Birth"
  • Liam
    birth name of Angel, character on TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel"
  • Liam Fergus Beircheart Gallagher
    character on TV's "Shameless"
  • Liam Moore
    character on TV's "Crossing Jordan"
  • Liam the Leprechaun
    character on YouTube show "Annoying Orange"
  • Liam Bernal
    character in Lisa M. Stasse's series "The Forsaken"
  • Liam Dunbar
    character on TV's "Teen Wolf"
  • Liam Booker
    character on MTV's "Faking It"
  • Liam Kinney
    character in Marissa Meyer's series "The Lunar Chronicles"
  • Liam Butcher
    character on British soap "EastEnders"
  • Liam Jones
    brother of Captain Hook on TV's "Once Upon a Time"
  • Liam Kosta
    character in the game "Mass Effect: Andromeda"
  • Liam O' Brien
    a character in the game "Assassin's Creed: Rogue"
  • Liam de Lioncourt
    character in "Monster Prom"
  • Liam Cole
    character in CBS' Salvation

Liam in Nameberry Blog Posts