Girls' name · peaked in 1883
Lena name popularity since 1925
76,084 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Lena. Half of them were born in 1968 or earlier, so the typical Lena is about 58 years old in 2026. Lena peaked in 1883 as the #42 name for girls, and it ranked #279 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 76,084
- Named Lena, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1883
- #42 for girls that year
- In 2025
- #279
- for girls in 2025 (1,106 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.8% girls
- 75,920 girls · 164 boys
- Most popular in
- Mississippi
- 2.21× its national share
Peak year is the year Lena 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.
Lena births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1925. Measured as a share of all babies, Lena peaked earlier, in 1883.
- Fastest rise: Between 2009 and 2014, Lena became 1.6× more common, from 1 in 2,390 baby girls to 1 in 1,530.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Lena's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Lena.
Decade by decade
Babies named Lena 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 | 9,794 | 46 | – |
| 1930s | 10,539 | 71 | #183 |
| 1940s | 7,367 | 31 | #251 |
| 1950s | 5,732 | 5 | #372 |
| 1960s | 5,193 | 0 | #407 |
| 1970s | 4,680 | 11 | #425 |
| 1980s | 4,583 | 0 | #424 |
| 1990s | 4,484 | 0 | #574 |
| 2000s | 6,097 | 0 | #466 |
| 2010s | 10,516 | 0 | #273 |
| 2020–25 | 6,935 | 0 | #279 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
24.6% of babies named Lena from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Lena is most popular
The index compares Lena'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 Lena.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 2.21× | 1,950 |
| Kentucky | 1.88× | 2,295 |
| Louisiana | 1.81× | 2,372 |
| West Virginia | 1.79× | 1,151 |
| Arkansas | 1.70× | 1,277 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Lena 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Lena (this page) | 75,920 | 1883 |
| Lenna | 3,004 | 1880 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Lena's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Lena.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Lena (1883).
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