girls' name ★ peaked 1970

Lea

Meaning A female given name from Hebrew, form of Leah Gender Girl · 2% boys Rank 2025 #848 Trend ↓ Falling 11%

A female given name from Hebrew, form of Leah.

Rank 2025
#848
among girls · ↓15 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
321
named Lea · -2% vs 2024
How common
1 in 5,007
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1970
600 babies
All-time total
34,468
#772 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Lea popularity over time

34,468 babies have been named Lea since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.10.20.30.418801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s 104 – 104 10 – #549
1890s 186 22 208 21 +100% #564
1900s 234 13 247 25 +19% #659
1910s 590 83 673 67 +172% #599
1920s 663 141 804 80 +19% #806
1930s 671 81 752 75 -6% #777
1940s 1,099 74 1,173 117 +56% #673
1950s 2,889 61 2,950 295 +151% #450
1960s 4,493 61 4,554 455 +54% #403
1970s 4,453 42 4,495 450 -1% #397
1980s 3,944 42 3,986 399 -11% #457
1990s 3,831 – 3,831 383 -4% #516
2000s 4,250 – 4,250 425 +11% #602
2010s 4,341 – 4,341 434 +2% #556
2020s (to 2025) 2,100 – 2,100 350 -19% #751

Where Lea is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 314 0.20 outside top 500
2027 308 0.19 outside top 500
2028 304 0.19 outside top 500
2029 300 0.19 outside top 500
2030 296 0.18 outside top 500

Where Lea is most popular

Girls named Lea per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.214 per 1,000. Strongest in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Lea born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
New York 219 0.553 +158%
New Jersey 98 0.543 +154%
Connecticut 25 0.430 +101%
Maryland 38 0.359 +67%
California 286 0.340 +59%
Illinois 77 0.336 +57%
Washington 40 0.277 +29%
Florida 118 0.276 +29%
Pennsylvania 64 0.271 +26%
Virginia 45 0.264 +23%
Arizona 31 0.221 ≈ national
Texas 170 0.211 ≈ national
New Mexico 5 0.206 ≈ national
Ohio 46 0.194 -9%
North Carolina 38 0.167 -22%
Georgia 35 0.154 -28%
Colorado 16 0.143 -33%
Minnesota 13 0.120 -44%
Tennessee 19 0.120 -44%
Massachusetts 14 0.116 -46%
South Carolina 10 0.111 -48%
Mississippi 5 0.107 -50%
Indiana 15 0.107 -50%
Michigan 19 0.104 -51%
Oklahoma 7 0.095 -56%
Missouri 11 0.091 -57%
Iowa 5 0.086 -60%
Utah 7 0.084 -61%
Oregon 5 0.077 -64%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Nevada – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Lea

Lea is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #848 in 2025 with 321 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 34,468 American babies have been named Lea. Its peak came in 1970, when 600 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1970s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Lea stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Lea?

The median living Lea is about 37 years old; half are between 18 and 56. An estimated 30 thousand people named Lea are alive in the United States today.

median 37 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Lea year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 321 #848 – –
2024 327 #833 – –
2023 349 #804 – –
2022 362 #786 – –
2021 378 #754 – –
2020 363 #751 – –
2019 389 #727 – –
2018 410 #710 – –
2017 337 #810 – –
2016 422 #690 – –
2015 382 #739 – –
2014 416 #682 – –
2013 473 #599 – –
2012 470 #610 – –
2011 528 #556 – –
2010 514 #569 – –
2009 431 #675 – –
2008 479 #643 – –
2007 432 #680 – –
2006 481 #608 – –
2005 473 #602 – –
2004 446 #616 – –
2003 396 #669 – –
2002 382 #665 – –
2001 363 #685 – –
2000 367 #663 – –
1995 332 #649 – –
1990 466 #516 – –
1985 378 #528 5 #7,140
1980 464 #457 – –
1975 403 #466 7 #4,593
1970 593 #397 7 #4,077
1965 442 #455 6 #3,748
1960 373 #503 5 #4,366
1955 338 #502 5 #4,158
1950 149 #704 9 #2,689
1945 95 #770 7 #2,887
1940 77 #813 6 #3,313
1935 62 #878 6 #3,464
1930 76 #813 11 #2,538
1925 59 #970 21 #1,717
1920 62 #925 12 #2,536
1915 58 #861 5 #4,138
1910 23 #904 – –
1905 23 #770 – –
1900 29 #665 8 #1,009
1895 11 #1,022 7 #939
1890 13 #777 5 #1,090
1885 16 #549 – –
1880 7 #709 – –

Famous people named Lea

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Lea Thompson Lea Thompson American actress and director (born 1961) Contemporary
  2. 2 Lea Michele Lea Michele American actress and singer (born 1986) Contemporary
  3. 3 Lea Salonga Lea Salonga Filipino actress and singer (born 1971) Contemporary
  4. 4 Lea DeLaria Lea DeLaria American comedian, actress and singer (born 1958) Contemporary
  5. 5 Lea Massari Lea Massari Italian actress (1933–2025) Contemporary
  6. 6 Lea T Lea T Brazilian stylist and model b. 1981 · Contemporary
  7. 7 Lea Padovani Lea Padovani Italian actress (1923–1991) 1920–1991 · Contemporary
  8. 8 Lea Sirk Lea Sirk Slovenian singer (born 1989) Contemporary
  9. 9 Lea Ahlborn Lea Ahlborn Swedish artist (1826–1897) 19th century

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Lea, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Lea?

The median living Lea is about 37 years old. Half of all living Leas are between 18 and 56 years old.

How many people named Lea are alive today?

An estimated 30 thousand people named Lea are alive in the United States, based on 34,468 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Lea mean?

A female given name from Hebrew, form of Leah.

How popular is the name Lea in 2025?

Lea ranked #848 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 321 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Lea?

34,468 babies have been named Lea in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Lea most popular?

Lea peaked in 1970, when 600 newborns received the name.

Is Lea a boy or girl name?

Lea is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 98% of babies with the name.

Is the name Lea rising or falling?

Lea is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Lea become more popular?

Lea is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 296 girls named Lea in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Lea?

Well-known people named Lea include Lea Thompson (actor), Lea Michele (actor), Lea Salonga (actor).

Names like Lea

Names that sound and feel close to Lea: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Lea with similar names → More names starting with L →