NameRealm
Lena

Lena: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“light”
Origin
Greek
Say it
LEE-nuh · 2 syllables
Used for
Girls

Used as a short form of Helena, Magdalena, or other names depending on language. In many contexts it is most directly linked to Helena, from Greek Helenē, traditionally associated with 'light'.

English namesGerman namesSlavic namesRussian namesNames meaning lightClassic namesInternational namesShort names

How popular is Lena?

2024364 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Lena in 20241,211

2024 rank#263 girls

Peak year1891

Total US babies since 1880145,682

Lena is steady now but far below its 1891 peak.

Names like Lena

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Helenatorch; shining light · Greek
  • Leenatender or delicate · Arabic
  • Lennavariant of Lena · English
  • Sophiawisdom · Greek
  • Sofiawisdom · Greek
  • Chloeyoung green shoot · Greek
  • Zoelife · Greek
  • Penelopeweaver; duck · Greek

Lena questions

What does the name Lena mean?

Lena means "light". It comes from Greek. Used as a short form of Helena, Magdalena, or other names depending on language. In many contexts it is most directly linked to Helena, from Greek Helenē, traditionally associated with 'light'.

Is Lena a boy or girl name?

Lena is mainly a girl's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Lena?

1,211 US babies were named Lena in 2024. Its peak year was 1891.

How do you pronounce Lena?

Lena is usually pronounced LEE-nuh.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.