Fun Facts About the Name Lyall
- 291 babies named Lyall: U.S. records list 291 babies given the name Lyall from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Lyall Mean?
Lyall is a Scottish masculine name that comes from a surname. The surname derives from the Old Norse personal name Ljótr (also recorded in Old Danish and Old Swedish as Liot), a byname based on the adjective ljótr, meaning "ugly." The literal meaning of the name is therefore "ugly" or "ugly one," and it began as a descriptive nickname rather than a name with a religious or abstract sense. A less common explanation derives it from the Old Norse compound Ljótúlfr, formed from ljótr ("ugly") and úlfr ("wolf"), which would give the sense "ugly wolf." The simpler derivation from Ljótr is the one usually given for the Scottish surname. The given name is a transferred use of that surname; similar-looking names such as Lyle have separate origins and should not be assumed to share this etymology.
Lyall Name History & Origins
The personal name behind Lyall reached Scotland with Norse settlers, especially in Orkney, Shetland, and Caithness, where Scandinavian settlement was strong. In those northern communities, Old Norse personal names such as Ljótr became hereditary surnames. Scottish records show the surname in forms including Lyall, Lyell, and Lyal. From Scotland it spread to other parts of the British Isles and to English-speaking countries.
As a first name, Lyall is a transferred use of the surname. Its use as a given name comes from the family name rather than from a saint's name or a literary character. The name is used in Scotland and in places with Scottish settlement.
How Popular is the Name Lyall?
Lyall 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 1929. Its best rank was #1,971 in 1929.
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 | #10,287 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2024 | #9,495 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2022 | #9,522 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2008 | #13,806 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1994 | #8,392 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1970 | #4,092 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1964 | #4,399 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1963 | #4,407 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1958 | #3,780 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1955 | #3,736 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #3,334 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1953 | #4,139 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1952 | #3,590 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1951 | #4,050 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1949 | #3,194 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1948 | #3,989 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1943 | #3,427 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1942 | #2,848 | 8 | 0.0006% |
| 1941 | #3,032 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1940 | #3,761 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1939 | #3,012 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1938 | #3,838 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1934 | #2,870 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1933 | #3,174 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1932 | #3,617 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1931 | #3,004 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1930 | #2,139 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1929 | #1,971 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1928 | #2,340 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1926 | #3,289 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1924 | #3,706 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1922 | #3,431 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1921 | #2,732 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1920 | #3,386 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1919 | #2,216 | 14 | 0.0014% |
| 1918 | #2,639 | 11 | 0.0011% |
| 1916 | #3,079 | 8 | 0.0009% |
| 1912 | #1,986 | 8 | 0.0019% |
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 Lyall 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 inventive, intuitive and extremely methodical. Since your will is so strong, you are hard to convince. You also dislike advice. You love beauty and philosophy, and you desire achievement. You have a strong need for freedom - physical, mental and spiritual.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Lyall's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Lyall's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.