Fun Facts About the Name Loki
- More than 2 thousand babies named Loki: U.S. records list 2,097 babies given the name Loki from 1880 through 2025. Even 94 girls received the name Loki - about 1 girl for every 21 boys.
What Does the Name Loki Mean?
Loki is a name from Old Norse, borne by the trickster god of Norse mythology. Its meaning is uncertain, and no single derivation has gained general acceptance. The explanations most often proposed involve Old Norse words for closing, locking, or looping. One connects the name to loka, "to shut or close," or to lok, "end, conclusion," which would suggest a sense like "closer" or "the one who brings things to an end." Another links it to a root meaning "loop" or "knot," as in a coil or a lock of hair. A separate and older idea tied the name to logi, "flame," and treated Loki as a fire being, but most scholars today do not accept that derivation as sound. These are explanations of the name's origin, not settled facts, and the fire reading in particular is a later interpretive proposal rather than a literal translation.
Loki Name History & Origins
The name is attested in Old Norse literature, above all in the Poetic Edda, a collection of older mythological and heroic poems preserved in a thirteenth-century manuscript, and in the Prose Edda of the Icelandic writer Snorri Sturluson, composed in the 1220s. These works are the main surviving sources for the figure, though their material draws on older poetic tradition. In the myths, Loki is a cunning companion and sometimes opponent of the gods, a blood-brother of Odin, and the father of monstrous children including the wolf Fenrir, the world serpent Jörmungandr, and Hel, ruler of the dead. The sources also record the byname Loptr, used alongside Loki, and describe his role in the death of the god Baldr and his subsequent binding as punishment.
Because the name is best known from myth, it carries a strong association with that trickster figure. It has also been used as a personal name, mainly in Scandinavia, though it has never been common internationally. In modern English-speaking countries the name is widely recognized through its use for the character Loki in Marvel comics and films, but the name itself is far older than those works and belongs first to Norse tradition.
How Popular is the Name Loki?
Loki has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2021. Its best rank was #1,234 in 2021.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #14,225 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #11,765 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2022 | #10,876 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2021 | #8,755 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2020 | #16,532 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #9,479 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2018 | #14,903 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2017 | #17,375 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2015 | #15,632 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2014 | #12,612 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2011 | #18,430 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2009 | #13,180 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2007 | #19,332 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,858 | 85 | 0.0050% |
| 2024 | #1,767 | 93 | 0.0054% |
| 2023 | #1,600 | 109 | 0.0064% |
| 2022 | #1,375 | 136 | 0.0078% |
| 2021 | #1,234 | 156 | 0.0089% |
| 2020 | #1,329 | 135 | 0.0078% |
| 2019 | #1,257 | 150 | 0.0084% |
| 2018 | #1,428 | 123 | 0.0068% |
| 2017 | #1,711 | 92 | 0.0050% |
| 2016 | #1,679 | 94 | 0.0050% |
| 2015 | #1,458 | 116 | 0.0061% |
| 2014 | #1,462 | 112 | 0.0058% |
| 2013 | #1,704 | 87 | 0.0046% |
| 2012 | #1,890 | 77 | 0.0041% |
| 2011 | #1,959 | 71 | 0.0037% |
| 2010 | #2,306 | 56 | 0.0029% |
| 2009 | #2,430 | 53 | 0.0027% |
| 2008 | #2,366 | 55 | 0.0027% |
| 2007 | #2,464 | 52 | 0.0025% |
| 2006 | #2,912 | 39 | 0.0019% |
| 2005 | #3,208 | 32 | 0.0016% |
| 2004 | #5,154 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 2003 | #4,216 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 2002 | #4,424 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 2001 | #4,812 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1999 | #10,940 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #9,935 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Loki Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You always bring to completion anything you start. You are generous but like to see returns from your giving. You have an executive ability, you are a leader. You are moral, balanced, honest and intellectual, and you may attain spirituality. You are wise and practical with an appreciation of beauty. You always think before you act. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
You are always looking for an opportunity to achieve financial and emotional security. You are basically peacemaker. You understand the law of harmony and desire to balance your life with those around you. You may feel incomplete without someone to share your love, ideals, wealth or work. You can be very sensitive and could appear a bit shy and perceptive. You have developed intuition, patience and the ability to nurture others. You can achieve the state of happiness if you are willing to accept your needs in a complimentary relationship and go to create them.
✦ Loki's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Loki's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.