girls' name ★ peaked 1983

Lindsay

Meaning Isle of Lind Gender Girl · 4% boys Rank 2025 #2,208 Trend ↓ Falling 35%

From Lindsey in Lincolnshire, from Old English Lindesēġe, Lindesīġe (“Isle of Lind”), the Old English name of the city of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, in which "Lind" comes…

Rank 2025
#2,208
among girls · ↓223 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
84
named Lindsay · -15% vs 2024
How common
1 in 19,134
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1983
8,713 babies
All-time total
135,501
#311 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Lindsay popularity over time

135,501 babies have been named Lindsay 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
1.883.755.637.518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 – 62 62 6 – –
1890s – 83 83 8 +34% –
1900s – 89 89 9 +7% –
1910s 6 304 310 31 +248% #4,175
1920s 19 457 476 48 +54% #4,001
1930s 34 397 431 43 -9% #2,100
1940s 327 498 825 83 +91% #989
1950s 948 1,047 1,995 200 +142% #810
1960s 583 814 1,397 140 -30% #1,332
1970s 12,358 408 12,766 1,277 +814% #88
1980s 68,491 658 69,149 6,915 +442% #36
1990s 31,382 212 31,594 3,159 -54% #69
2000s 12,262 71 12,333 1,233 -61% #179
2010s 3,290 29 3,319 332 -73% #597
2020s (to 2025) 665 7 672 112 -66% #1,456

Where Lindsay 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 78 0.05 outside top 500
2027 73 0.05 outside top 500
2028 69 0.04 outside top 500
2029 66 0.04 outside top 500
2030 63 0.04 outside top 500

Where Lindsay is most popular

Girls named Lindsay per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.067 per 1,000. Strongest in Massachusetts, Maryland, and New Jersey.

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 Lindsay 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
Massachusetts 15 0.124 +86%
Maryland 13 0.123 +84%
New Jersey 21 0.116 +74%
New York 41 0.104 +55%
Texas 73 0.091 +36%
Virginia 15 0.088 +32%
Florida 34 0.079 +19%
California 59 0.070 +5%
Pennsylvania 12 0.051 -24%
Georgia 11 0.048 -27%
North Carolina 10 0.044 -34%
Tennessee 5 0.032 -53%
Illinois 6 0.026 -61%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
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 Lindsay

Lindsay is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #2,208 in 2025 with 84 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 135,501 American babies have been named Lindsay. Its peak came in 1983, when 8,713 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1980s.

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 Lindsay stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Lindsay?

The median living Lindsay is about 38 years old; half are between 32 and 43. An estimated 130 thousand people named Lindsay are alive in the United States today.

median 38 020406080100

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

Lindsay 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 84 #2,208 – –
2024 99 #1,985 – –
2023 93 #2,084 – –
2022 117 #1,770 – –
2021 148 #1,456 7 #10,361
2020 124 #1,663 – –
2019 144 #1,512 – –
2018 174 #1,311 – –
2017 217 #1,147 6 #11,614
2016 259 #1,024 – –
2015 328 #853 9 #8,445
2014 433 #662 8 #9,293
2013 412 #687 – –
2012 396 #710 – –
2011 435 #655 6 #11,715
2010 492 #597 – –
2009 575 #527 5 #13,693
2008 848 #382 – –
2007 1,067 #316 10 #7,950
2006 1,248 #263 8 #9,246
2005 1,398 #240 12 #6,466
2004 1,354 #241 9 #7,931
2003 1,229 #260 6 #10,356
2002 1,241 #255 – –
2001 1,502 #210 9 #7,271
2000 1,800 #179 12 #5,771
1995 2,562 #125 22 #3,156
1990 5,040 #69 40 #1,925
1985 7,871 #40 86 #990
1980 4,353 #71 52 #1,302
1975 515 #396 22 #2,102
1970 82 #1,312 41 #1,308
1965 50 #1,585 74 #856
1960 54 #1,512 152 #632
1955 92 #1,052 122 #661
1950 116 #810 97 #699
1945 18 #2,026 50 #908
1940 10 #2,874 39 #1,042
1935 – – 35 #1,114
1930 – – 40 #1,102
1925 – – 50 #965
1920 – – 58 #907
1915 – – 40 #1,008
1910 – – 12 #968
1905 – – 9 #883
1900 – – 15 #667
1895 – – 11 #658
1890 – – 13 #554
1885 – – 6 #889
1880 – – 7 #781

Famous people named Lindsay

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

  1. 1 Lindsay Lohan Lindsay Lohan American actress and singer (born 1986) Contemporary
  2. 2 Lindsay Wagner Lindsay Wagner American actress (born 1949) Contemporary
  3. 3 Lindsay Duncan Lindsay Duncan Scottish actress (born 1950) Contemporary
  4. 4 Lindsay Crouse American actress (born 1948) Contemporary
  5. 5 Lindsay Hoyle Lindsay Hoyle British politician (born 1957) Contemporary
  6. 6 Lindsay Sloane Lindsay Sloane American actress (born 1977) Contemporary
  7. 7 Lindsay Price Lindsay Price American actress and singer (born 1976) Contemporary
  8. 8 Lindsay Davenport Lindsay Davenport American former tennis player (born 1976) Contemporary
  9. 9 Lindsay Kemp Lindsay Kemp British dancer, actor and mime (1938–2018) Contemporary
  10. 10 Lindsay Anderson Lindsay Anderson English filmmaker, theatre director, and film critic (1923–1994) Contemporary
  11. 11 Lindsay Whalen Lindsay Whalen American basketball player and coach (born 1982) Contemporary
  12. 12 Lindsay Ellingson Lindsay Ellingson American model and businesswoman (born 1984) Contemporary
  13. 13 Lindsay Rose Lindsay Rose Footballer (born 1992) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Lindsay?

The median living Lindsay is about 38 years old. Half of all living Lindsays are between 32 and 43 years old.

How many people named Lindsay are alive today?

An estimated 130 thousand people named Lindsay are alive in the United States, based on 135,501 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Lindsay mean?

From Lindsey in Lincolnshire, from Old English Lindesēġe, Lindesīġe (“Isle of Lind”), the Old English name of the city of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, in which "Lind" comes from the Common Brittonic form of the name of Lincoln and…

How popular is the name Lindsay in 2025?

Lindsay ranked #2,208 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 84 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Lindsay?

135,501 babies have been named Lindsay in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Lindsay most popular?

Lindsay peaked in 1983, when 8,713 newborns received the name.

Is Lindsay a boy or girl name?

Lindsay is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 96% of babies with the name.

Is the name Lindsay rising or falling?

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

Will Lindsay become more popular?

Lindsay is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 63 girls named Lindsay 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 Lindsay?

Well-known people named Lindsay include Lindsay Lohan (actor), Lindsay Wagner (actor), Lindsay Duncan (actor).

Names like Lindsay

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

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