Derived from the Germanic name William, meaning 'resolute protector.'
Willis is an English patronymic surname that migrated into use as a given name, following a pattern common in the nineteenth-century Anglophone world. Its root is William — itself from the Old High German *Willahelm*, a compound of *wil* (will, desire) and *helm* (helmet, protection), yielding the warlike but purposeful sense of "resolute protector." Willis, meaning "son of Will," inherits that strength while acquiring the friendlier, more approachable character of a nickname.
As a given name, Willis gained traction particularly in the American South and Midwest through the 1800s and early 1900s, where surname-to-given-name transfers were fashionable as a way of honoring maternal family lines. The name is carried by figures in American history, including politicians and musicians, but perhaps its most famous bearer in popular culture is Willis Reed, the New York Knicks center whose limping return in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals became one of sport's defining moments of grit and leadership. The name also achieved a kind of warm comedic immortality through Willis Jackson, the elder brother on the television series *Diff'rent Strokes*, played by Todd Bridges.
Willis receded from common use through the mid-twentieth century but has the profile of a name ripe for revival — short, strong, authentically vintage without feeling dusty. It sits comfortably alongside resurgent names like Walter, Henry, and Arthur while remaining genuinely uncommon, giving a child a name that feels both familiar and refreshingly unhurried.