Lionel
Last seen for girls in 1986 at #10,912 · #659 for boys in 2025, 419 births
Given to boys 99.9% of the time
- Peak · boys
- 1934 · 336 births
- Debut · boys
- 8 births
- In top 100 · boys
- neverof 146 years
- Total births · boys
- 33,789since 1880
Lionel over time
Rank among boys' names. Lionel has never cracked the top 200 here.
Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.
Show data table
| Year | girls | boys | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| rank | births | rank | births | |
| 2025 | — | #659 | 419 | |
| 2024 | — | #562 | 529 | |
| 2023 | — | #495 | 609 | |
| 2022 | — | #620 | 450 | |
| 2021 | — | #660 | 410 | |
| 2020 | — | #659 | 398 | |
| 2019 | — | #631 | 428 | |
| 2018 | — | #634 | 418 | |
| 2017 | — | #596 | 458 | |
| 2016 | — | #583 | 475 | |
| 2015 | — | #645 | 405 | |
| 2014 | — | #662 | 388 | |
| 2013 | — | #738 | 317 | |
| 2012 | — | #807 | 275 | |
| 2011 | — | #791 | 282 | |
| 2010 | — | #899 | 228 | |
| 2009 | — | #1,074 | 173 | |
| 2008 | — | #1,133 | 161 | |
| 2007 | — | #1,171 | 151 | |
| 2006 | — | #1,224 | 137 | |
| 2005 | — | #1,132 | 144 | |
| 2004 | — | #1,235 | 122 | |
| 2003 | — | #1,167 | 128 | |
| 2002 | — | #1,160 | 122 | |
| 2001 | — | #992 | 154 | |
| 2000 | — | #998 | 148 | |
| 1999 | — | #1,019 | 136 | |
| 1998 | — | #913 | 157 | |
| 1997 | — | #1,051 | 121 | |
| 1996 | — | #974 | 130 | |
| 1995 | — | #824 | 169 | |
| 1994 | — | #847 | 160 | |
| 1993 | — | #727 | 204 | |
| 1992 | — | #746 | 191 | |
| 1991 | — | #708 | 205 | |
| 1990 | — | #665 | 231 | |
| 1989 | — | #602 | 265 | |
| 1988 | — | #584 | 251 | |
| 1987 | — | #508 | 310 | |
| 1986 | #10,912 | 5 | #484 | 327 |
| 1985 | #10,677 | 5 | #428 | 401 |
| 1984 | #10,422 | 5 | #387 | 443 |
| 1983 | #10,275 | 5 | #395 | 420 |
| 1982 | — | #455 | 354 | |
| 1981 | #6,804 | 9 | #487 | 293 |
| 1980 | — | #483 | 304 | |
| 1979 | — | #548 | 243 | |
| 1978 | — | #521 | 249 | |
| 1977 | — | #528 | 251 | |
| 1976 | — | #486 | 266 | |
| 1975 | — | #503 | 252 | |
| 1974 | — | #553 | 212 | |
| 1973 | — | #505 | 239 | |
| 1972 | — | #542 | 215 | |
| 1971 | — | #504 | 260 | |
| 1970 | — | #522 | 239 | |
| 1969 | — | #455 | 283 | |
| 1968 | — | #466 | 266 | |
| 1967 | — | #441 | 292 | |
| 1966 | — | #449 | 292 | |
| 1965 | — | #455 | 290 | |
| 1964 | — | #421 | 368 | |
| 1963 | — | #412 | 382 | |
| 1962 | — | #402 | 405 | |
| 1961 | — | #389 | 420 | |
| 1960 | — | #364 | 468 | |
| 1959 | — | #388 | 416 | |
| 1958 | #6,103 | 5 | #412 | 360 |
| 1957 | — | #425 | 336 | |
| 1956 | — | #365 | 410 | |
| 1955 | — | #407 | 323 | |
| 1954 | — | #372 | 359 | |
| 1953 | — | #354 | 385 | |
| 1952 | — | #366 | 340 | |
| 1951 | — | #370 | 340 | |
| 1950 | — | #355 | 363 | |
| 1949 | — | #370 | 336 | |
| 1948 | — | #368 | 339 | |
| 1947 | — | #370 | 349 | |
| 1946 | — | #360 | 329 | |
| 1945 | — | #345 | 306 | |
| 1944 | — | #343 | 303 | |
| 1943 | — | #364 | 284 | |
| 1942 | — | #366 | 274 | |
| 1941 | — | #341 | 287 | |
| 1940 | — | #352 | 260 | |
| 1939 | — | #332 | 277 | |
| 1938 | — | #333 | 280 | |
| 1937 | — | #345 | 247 | |
| 1936 | — | #314 | 291 | |
| 1935 | — | #325 | 281 | |
| 1934 | — | #295 | 336 | |
| 1933 | — | #295 | 321 | |
| 1932 | — | #310 | 311 | |
| 1931 | #4,331 | 5 | #321 | 290 |
| 1930 | — | #330 | 281 | |
| 1929 | — | #344 | 265 | |
| 1928 | — | #326 | 297 | |
| 1927 | — | #322 | 319 | |
| 1926 | — | #338 | 294 | |
| 1925 | — | #327 | 309 | |
| 1924 | — | #322 | 325 | |
| 1923 | — | #319 | 329 | |
| 1922 | — | #338 | 302 | |
| 1921 | #5,099 | 5 | #318 | 334 |
| 1920 | — | #362 | 272 | |
| 1919 | — | #362 | 253 | |
| 1918 | — | #356 | 266 | |
| 1917 | — | #350 | 255 | |
| 1916 | — | #385 | 205 | |
| 1915 | — | #359 | 224 | |
| 1914 | — | #365 | 168 | |
| 1913 | — | #367 | 129 | |
| 1912 | — | #346 | 119 | |
| 1911 | — | #314 | 74 | |
| 1910 | — | #480 | 33 | |
| 1909 | — | #428 | 34 | |
| 1908 | — | #438 | 30 | |
| 1907 | — | #417 | 30 | |
| 1906 | — | #424 | 27 | |
| 1905 | — | #430 | 25 | |
| 1904 | — | #482 | 20 | |
| 1903 | — | #353 | 30 | |
| 1902 | — | #490 | 19 | |
| 1901 | — | #422 | 20 | |
| 1900 | — | #446 | 26 | |
| 1899 | — | #438 | 18 | |
| 1898 | — | #435 | 21 | |
| 1897 | — | #438 | 19 | |
| 1896 | — | #438 | 20 | |
| 1895 | — | #456 | 19 | |
| 1894 | — | #419 | 20 | |
| 1893 | — | #419 | 19 | |
| 1892 | — | #748 | 9 | |
| 1891 | — | #427 | 17 | |
| 1890 | — | #511 | 14 | |
| 1889 | — | #673 | 9 | |
| 1888 | — | #704 | 9 | |
| 1887 | — | #488 | 13 | |
| 1886 | — | #578 | 11 | |
| 1885 | — | #936 | 5 | |
| 1884 | — | #848 | 6 | |
| 1883 | — | #720 | 7 | |
| 1882 | — | #943 | 5 | |
| 1881 | — | — | ||
| 1880 | — | #682 | 8 | |
In the first year the SSA published name data, Lionel was already there! It came in at #682, and was given to 8 baby boys.
Quietest stretch: 1881–1882, when fewer than 6 boys a year got the name.
See more about Lionel
- 97 spots since 2024 (#562 → #659)
- Same as 2020 (#659)
- 14 spots since 2015 (#645 → #659)
- Biggest jump: 358 spots in 1886 (#936 → #578)
- Biggest drop: 321 spots in 1892 (#427 → #748)
- Debuted 1880
- Peaked 1934 at #295 (336 births)
- Births halved by 1994, 60 yrs later
- Top 10: never
- Top 100: never
- Top 1,000: 135 yrs · run 1882–1996
- Highest: 1 in 2,809 boys born in 2023 were named Lionel (0.04%)
- Latest: 1 in 4,077 boys born in 2025 (0.02%)
- Its best rank, #295 in 1934, was only 1 in 3,073 (0.03%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
- 10.9% of all boys named Lionel (3,674) were born in this decade
Show by decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank | Avg rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 73 | #488 (1887) | #730 |
| 1890s | 176 | #419 (1894) | #473 |
| 1900s | 261 | #353 (1903) | #433 |
| 1910s | 1,726 | #314 (1911) | #368 |
| 1920s | 3,046 | #318 (1921) | #332 |
| 1930s | 2,915 | #295 (1934) | #320 |
| 1940s | 3,067 | #341 (1941) | #358 |
| 1950s | 3,632 | #354 (1953) | #381 |
| 1960s | 3,466 | #364 (1960) | #425 |
| 1970s | 2,426 | #486 (1976) | #521 |
| 1980s | 3,368 | #387 (1984) | #481 |
| 1990s | 1,704 | #665 (1990) | #847 |
| 2000s | 1,440 | #992 (2001) | #1,129 |
| 2010s | 3,674 | #583 (2016) | #699 |
| 2020s | 2,815 | #495 (2023) | #609 |
All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.
Lionel in 1981
Top girls' names in 1981
Top boys' names in 1981
More about 1981
girls
1,668,060 girls got a published name in 1981; 1 in 185,340 of them was named Lionel, which outranked 44.2% of the 12,198 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.3% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).
- #6,323Yevette10
- #6,323Yolunda10
- #6,323Zulay10
- #6,804Lionel9
- #6,804Abeni9
- #6,804Adeola9
- #6,804Aidan9
- #7,409Aaren8
- #7,409Aarin8
- #7,409Abigael8
Tied with 604 names at #6,804; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.
Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.
boys
1,791,177 boys got a published name in 1981; 1 in 6,113 of them was named Lionel, which outranked 93.3% of the 7,289 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).