Girls' name · peaked in 2009
Leah name popularity since 1925
245,960 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Leah. Half of them were born in 2001 or earlier, so the typical Leah is about 25 years old in 2026. Leah peaked in 2009 as the #29 name for girls, and it ranked #58 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 245,960
- Named Leah, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #58
- for girls in 2025 (3,880 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.8% girls
- 245,494 girls · 466 boys
- Most popular in
- Alaska
- 1.46× its national share
Peak year is the year Leah made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Leah births per year, 1925–2025
2009 was the biggest year for Leah both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Steepest fall: Between 1937 and 1942, Leah's share of baby girls fell by 36%, from 1 in 2,610 to 1 in 4,090.
- Fastest rise: Between 1959 and 1964, it became 2.1× more common, from 1 in 2,740 baby girls to 1 in 1,330.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Leah's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Leah.
Decade by decade
Babies named Leah in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 1,939 | 0 | – |
| 1930s | 3,539 | 0 | #334 |
| 1940s | 3,495 | 0 | #421 |
| 1950s | 5,960 | 0 | #356 |
| 1960s | 12,743 | 32 | #228 |
| 1970s | 21,145 | 76 | #132 |
| 1980s | 36,056 | 154 | #78 |
| 1990s | 34,099 | 39 | #103 |
| 2000s | 45,430 | 80 | #68 |
| 2010s | 56,044 | 69 | #36 |
| 2020–25 | 25,044 | 16 | #58 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
30.1% of babies named Leah from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Leah is most popular
The index compares Leah's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Leah.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 1.46× | 533 |
| Nevada | 1.35× | 1,190 |
| Florida | 1.31× | 11,692 |
| New Hampshire | 1.31× | 1,011 |
| Minnesota | 1.30× | 5,835 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Leah and were given to at least 1,000 girls from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Girls | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Leah (this page) | 245,494 | 2009 |
| Lea | 32,399 | 1970 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Leah's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Leah.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Leah (2009).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data