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Home › Baby Names Directory › Mills

Mills

♂ Boy

Pronounced MEELLS /ˈmills/Medium

Meaning: MillMedium

In 30 seconds: Mills is a boy's name from English, tied to the word 'mill'.
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Origin MediumEnglish
MeaningMill
U.S. rank (2024)#2929 ↗ Rising
2024 U.S. births43 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)
Peak year2024
Total births (all-time)≈ 873

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 202418822024

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Mills draws on the English word 'mill', the kind of building once central to a working village. As a given name it reads like a surname brought to the front, plain and grounded in everyday life.

Its single clipped syllable gives it a sturdy, no-frills feel that suits parents after something short and unfussy.

Did you know? Mills likely reached first-name use through a surname or place-name route, which gives it that modern borrowed-from-history feel.
Overall data confidence 62%
Behind the Name - Mills — etymology, usage, pronunciation, and related formsU.S. Social Security Administration — 2024 popularity rank and count supplied in the batch input CSV

Variations

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Nicknames

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If you like Mills…

Wells— Another English place-and-trade surname used as a one-syllable boy's name.
Banks— A comparable English surname-style name rooted in the landscape.
Mike— another English name
Wren— lands in the same popularity range
Ash— a fellow English choice

Explore names like Mills

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Mills mean?

Mills is usually explained as meaning 'mill' and is most often linked with English tradition.

How do you pronounce Mills?

It's commonly said MEELLS /ˈmills/.

Is Mills a boy or girl name?

In this batch and in recent U.S. usage data, Mills is used as a boy name.

How popular is Mills?

In 2024, Mills ranked #2929 in the U.S. for boys, with 43 births recorded.

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