Li
Li is a unisex given name: about 50% of people named Li are men and 50% are women, so a gendered salutation is a coin flip and the neutral form is the safe choice.
This name is used for both men and women without a strong lean either way.
- Verdict
- Unisex
- Male / female split
- 50% male / 50% female
- Confidence
- High (64 or more weighted country observations)
- Most common in
- China, United States, Sweden
- US births since 1880
- 120 male / 251 female
- Data
- nam_dict (GFDL) + US SSA
- Updated
- 2026-09-11
How to address Li
To address Li when you do not know their gender, use the full name with no title: "Dear Li," in English, "Guten Tag Li," in German. About 50% of people named Li are men and 50% are women, so a gendered salutation is close to a coin flip, and the neutral form above is the safer choice.
Ready-made greetings in six languages
English
Dear Li,
German
Guten Tag Li,
French
Bonjour Li,
Spanish
Estimado/a Li:
Chinese
Li您好：
Japanese
Li様
English
Hi Li,
German
Hi Li,
French
Salut Li,
Spanish
Hola Li,
Chinese
Li你好：
Japanese
Liさん
This is a statistical estimate, not a statement about the gender, identity or correct form of address of any particular person.
Country breakdown
| Country | How common | Usually | Male share |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | very common | unisex name | 50% |
| United States | rare | woman's name | 32% |
| Sweden | rare | woman's name | 2% |
| Korea | rare | unisex name | 50% |
| Vietnam | rare | unisex name | 50% |
United States birth data
120 male · 251 female · 371 births recorded
Since 1980: 32% male.
Frequently asked questions
Is Li a male or female name?
Li is a unisex given name: about 50% of people named Li are men and 50% are women, so a gendered salutation is a coin flip and the neutral form is the safe choice.
How do I address Li in an email?
To address Li when you do not know their gender, use the full name with no title: "Dear Li," in English, "Guten Tag Li," in German. About 50% of people named Li are men and 50% are women, so a gendered salutation is close to a coin flip, and the neutral form above is the safer choice.
Is Li a unisex name?
Li is a unisex name: 50% of people named Li are men. The split stays close across most of the countries in the data.
Related names
Sources
Gender by country: nam_dict, the c't first-names dictionary by Joerg Michael, roughly 44,000 names across 55 countries, licensed GFDL. US frequencies: United States Social Security Administration baby-name data, public domain. Method: how we classify names. Full dataset: data & licences. Data built 2026-09-11.
DearWho, "Is Li a male or female name?", https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/li (accessed 2026-09-11). Data: nam_dict (J. Michael, GFDL) and US SSA, built 2026-09-11.
BibTeX
@misc{dearwho_li,
title = {Is Li a male or female name?},
author = {{DearWho}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/li},
note = {Data: nam_dict (GFDL), US SSA public domain}
}