The baby name Ilo blends a slim, straightforward sound with a range of appealing meanings.
Thanks to Emma for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
WHAT DOES THE NAME ILO MEAN?
Mini names tend to be shape-shifters.
That means there’s no single, definitive meaning of Ilo.
Instead, we have a few possibilities:
First up: the name Ilo belongs to an Estonian goddess. She personified joy, and was known for hosting feasts. Think more Dionysus than Demeter.
Estonian and Finnish are related languages; it’s also used in Finland as a feminine name meaning joy, delight, or happiness. But here’s an interesting twist. Nordic Names connects the Finnish Ilo to the Latin Hilarius, meaning cheerful. The letters and sound are there, but so is the meaning.
One more origin for Ilo, this time unisex, emerges. Old Testament name Elijah became Elias in Greek and Latin. Elia, Ilia, Ilya, and Ilja all emerged as forms of the name in various languages.
If Ilja is a short form in Estonian, is Ilo really that much of a stretch? At least some of the time, Ilo seems to develop as the most reduced version of an Elias name. It means “Yahweh is my God.” In the Old Testament, he’s a prophet and miracle worker.
It’s also occasionally a surname. Spiridon Ilo is one of the Founding Fathers of Albania, a signatory to their Declaration of Independence in 1912. Again, the origins of his last name are unclear.
Lastly, it’s a place name in Peru – but again, the meaning and origin are uncertain.
ILO IN THE UNITED STATES
A handful of uses put the baby name Ilo on parents’ radar
From 1941 through 1945, Ilo Wallace served as Second Lady of the United States. Her husband, Henry Wallace, took the office of 33rd US Vice President under President Franklin Roosevelt, after serving as Agriculture Secretary and Secretary of Commerce.
Born Ilo Browne, the land and small finanical inheritance she brought to their marriage helped the Wallaces launch a seed company still in operation today. A native of Indianola, Iowa, the reason for her unusual given name is unclear. It doesn’t appear to be a family name.
Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Sylvia Plath records the name in her personal journals in the year 1950. While working at Lookout Farm in South Natick, Massachussetts, she briefly falls for someone named Ilo. Her diaries, published after her death, describe a stolen kiss. That makes this name masculine and literary, at least the tiniest bit.
HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME ILO?
The baby name Ilo reached the US Top 1000 for girls just twice: in 1888 and 1889. In terms of numbers, Ilo reached peak popularity around the year 1921, when 33 girls received the name
It debuted in the boys’ data way back in 1918, but has never really caught on.
That might be changing now, though.
The baby name Ilo disappeared from US data entirely after the year 1947. Then in 2011, it returned, with 9 boys receiving the name.
As of 2024, the baby name Ilo was given to 12 boys and 7 girls. Combined, that’s the highest number of births since the 1920s.
It’s possible parents are inventing Ilo now, inspired by Milo and Elia and Isla, too.
MODERN MINI
The baby name Ilo shares the characteristics of many trending names now. It’s unisex, nicely international in spirit, hard to pin down to a single origin or meaning. And yet it feels like there’s history behind Ilo – even if we’re not quite sure exactly what that history means.
If you’re after something brief, bright, and with a hint of a happy meaning, the baby name Ilo might be just right for your family.
What do you think of the baby name Ilo?
First published on October 5, 2010, this post was revised on March 28, 2026.
I want to pronounce Ilo, EE low, when I read it. I don’t really like the sound of that or EYE low.
Ily is the nn of an friend of a friend of mine – my age – I’m not sure what it’s short for, but she is Brazilian, so maybe Iliana?
Also, Ilya is a Russian name, equivalent to Elijah. I think I far prefer Ilya to Ilo.
I’m not sure what the correct pronunciation would be, JNE, but I was saying EYE low. But I’ve been influenced by hearing chatter about Ily, so that might be a mistake on my part.
Ilya is a great suggestion – very Slavic.
not my cup of tea really. Io makes me want to sing “e i e” before it!! 🙂
That’s a nice point. My child has been calling herself ee OO, and seems to think that “The Farmer in the Dell” is her personal theme song.
Now that is cute!
It sounds masculine to my ears too – probably because of the similarity to ‘Milo’. Or it almost sounds like a male version of Isla. I do like the “oh” sound though. But I’d pick Milo for a boy or Sylvia for a girl. 🙂 Oh and it reminds me of a name I read in the local obituaries – Orlo – which I’d presume is male.
Wow, I’d forgotten about suggesting this one! Hm, one of my more wackier ones, not sure I like it so much now. Could be awesome on the right person, though.
Nice to learn the Estonian word for joy! Ilo, Ily and Io are just too spare for my taste. I’d love to meet a baby Gioia or Alegria though.
I’m strangely attracted to Ilo. I’m not usually fond of ends-in-o names, and I’m no fan of Ily, but I love the way Ilo rolls of my tongue. To me, the name reads masculine.
Count me on Io’s fanpage, but not Ilo. Although it sounds rather neat (and masculine to *my* ears), I don’t think it would work for me unless it was a nickname. But for what? Hmmm?
But Io? Love her to pieces. I’ve got her down as both a nickname & a full name. And will probably use her if I get the chance!
It reminds me of one of my Danish students’ names that always intrigued me: Io. I had never seen a two-letter name comprised solely of vowels before.
Not a fan of Ily or Ilo. They just look incomplete to me.
I love Io! I suggested Claire Caroline Io for Clio’s full name – but we ended up with Wren instead. Io is, by far, the shortest name that has ever struck me as complete.
Ilo and Ily, though, do both seem a little bit lacking – maybe because it is so common to see Milo and Riley, Lily, etc.
And I just found out in modern Estonian, ilo is the word for “pleasure.”
Thanks, Sebastiane! I wonder if that is pleasure in a G-rated, kid-friendly way? Or more of an overindulgent sense?
Regarding the meaning of Ilo in Estonian, I found this entry in wikipedis:
EtymologyUnknown, but cognate to at least Estonian ilu (