Louis is the French form of the Germanic Ludwig, from hlud, famous, and wig, war, and means "famous warrior" or "renowned in battle". Eighteen kings of France bore the name, and in America it belongs to Louis Armstrong, whose Louisiana hometown is itself named for Louis XIV. Louis has been in the US top 1000 continuously, moving from number 279 in 2000 to a peak of number 236 in 2024 and number 249 among boys' names in 2025.