Valency of Lithium (Li)
The valency of Lithium is 1 — it has 1 valence electron, and it loses it to complete its outer shell.
Looking for Lithium's valency without wading through a whole chapter? Here is the direct answer first, then the tables and derivations examiners want to see. Every number on this page comes from the same engine that powers the interactive table. Need the whole picture instead — history, characteristics, uses, exam questions? The full Lithium page is one click away.
Counting the valence electrons
From the configuration [He] 2s^1, Lithium's outermost shell carries 1 electron. These are the electrons shown as dots in electron-dot diagrams — the hands Lithium uses to hold other atoms.
Position check: Lithium belongs to group 1 of the periodic table, period 2.
Valency vs valence electrons
Valence electrons are what you count (1 for Lithium); valency is what the atom will do to complete its outer shell (1 here). Keep the two words straight and half the periodic-table chapter writes itself.
Students also ask
How do I find the valency of Lithium from its group?
Lithium sits in group 1; groups 1–2 metals have valency equal to the group number — 1 here.
Why does Lithium show a fixed valency?
Lithium has 1 valence electron and reaches a complete outer shell in one consistent way, so its valency stays fixed at 1.