Lionel

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Meaning

Lionel is a masculine given name which originated as a French diminutive of Léon. Both names are derived from the Latin word “leon,” meaning “lion”.

From Wikipedia

Lionel first appears in the data in 1880 and has been recorded in 144 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 2023 with 607 babies (rank #496 that year). In 2024 it was given to 528 boys (rank #561). Its popularity has been fairly steady recently.

Numerology of Lionel

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of Lionel yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

4Destiny numberThe builderPractical, steady, gets results through hard work.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
2Soul urgeThe peacemakerDiplomatic, sensitive, partnership-minded.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
11PersonalityThe visionary (master)Intuitive and inspirational — a heightened 2.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

33,410

Total babies (all years)

144

Years in the data

607

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Famous people named Lionel

Lionel Messiassociation football player · b. 1987
Lionel Richiepop musician · b. 1949
Lionel Jospinwitness filmed · b. 1937
Lionel Barrymorefilm actor · b. 1878
Lionel Scaloniassociation football player · b. 1978

Share your Lionel story

Why did you choose this name — or what does it mean to you? Approved stories appear on this page.

More popular boys' names

Names ranked near Lionel in 2024

Other boys' names starting with L

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1880	8	#718
1882	5	#1,029
1883	7	#770
1884	6	#925
1885	5	#1,028
1886	11	#588
1887	13	#503
1888	9	#733
1889	9	#703
1890	14	#523
1891	17	#438
1892	9	#776
1893	19	#425
1894	20	#431
1895	19	#466
1896	20	#453
1897	19	#448
1898	21	#446
1899	18	#447
1900	26	#451
1901	20	#431
1902	19	#498
1903	30	#355
1904	20	#484
1905	25	#443
1906	27	#428
1907	30	#425
1908	30	#445
1909	34	#430
1910	33	#489
1911	74	#315
1912	119	#346
1913	129	#368
1914	168	#365
1915	224	#359
1916	205	#385
1917	255	#350
1918	266	#356
1919	253	#362
1920	272	#363
1921	334	#319
1922	302	#338
1923	329	#320
1924	325	#322
1925	309	#328
1926	294	#339
1927	319	#322
1928	297	#326
1929	265	#344
1930	281	#330
1931	290	#321
1932	311	#310
1933	321	#295
1934	336	#295
1935	281	#325
1936	291	#315
1937	247	#345
1938	280	#333
1939	277	#334
1940	260	#352
1941	287	#342
1942	274	#367
1943	284	#364
1944	303	#344
1945	306	#345
1946	329	#360
1947	349	#371
1948	339	#368
1949	336	#370
1950	363	#355
1951	340	#371
1952	340	#366
1953	385	#354
1954	359	#372
1955	323	#408
1956	410	#365
1957	336	#425
1958	362	#412
1959	414	#389
1960	467	#365
1961	421	#389
1962	404	#402
1963	383	#412
1964	368	#421
1965	290	#455
1966	292	#449
1967	292	#442
1968	266	#466
1969	283	#455
1970	239	#522
1971	260	#504
1972	215	#542
1973	239	#505
1974	212	#553
1975	252	#504
1976	266	#487
1977	251	#529
1978	249	#521
1979	243	#550
1980	304	#483
1981	293	#488
1982	354	#455
1983	421	#395
1984	443	#387
1985	401	#428
1986	327	#485
1987	310	#509
1988	251	#585
1989	265	#602
1990	231	#665
1991	205	#709
1992	191	#747
1993	204	#729
1994	160	#848
1995	169	#824
1996	130	#975
1997	121	#1,054
1998	157	#915
1999	136	#1,023
2000	148	#1,002
2001	154	#993
2002	122	#1,164
2003	128	#1,170
2004	122	#1,241
2005	144	#1,135
2006	137	#1,226
2007	151	#1,174
2008	161	#1,134
2009	173	#1,075
2010	228	#899
2011	282	#791
2012	275	#809
2013	317	#739
2014	388	#663
2015	405	#645
2016	475	#583
2017	458	#596
2018	418	#634
2019	428	#631
2020	398	#661
2021	410	#662
2022	448	#626
2023	607	#496
2024	528	#561