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Lenny

Gender
Boy
Say it
LEN-ee
Origin
Germanic
UK rank, 2025
#154 for boys
US rank, 2025
#1,418 for boys

Lenny is a boys' name of Germanic origin, meaning “brave as a lion”. In 2025 it ranked 154th for boys in the UK (384 babies) and 1,418th for boys in the US (128 babies).

What does Lenny mean?

Germanic: pet form of Leonard

“brave as a lion”

A pet form of Leonard, from Germanic words for lion and brave, now used as a name in its own right.

More on Wiktionary.

Is Lenny a girl's or a boy's name?

Lenny is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 384 boys in the UK and 61 girls and 128 boys in the US.

How popular is Lenny in the UK?

Rank in 2025
154th among boys
Babies in 2025
384 about 1 in 780 boys
Five-year trend
Steady up 5% in five years
Same name in a class
1.8% chance among 15 boys

In 2025, 384 boys in the UK were named Lenny, making it the 154th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 168th. Its busiest year was 2024, with 394 boys.

Half of all the boys named Lenny in the UK since 1996 were born between 2013 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.

In 2025, 610 boys in the UK were given Lenny or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #107, up from #154 for this spelling alone.

Among boys in 2025, it was 141st in England and Wales, 495th in Scotland and 237th in Northern Ireland.

1996Busiest: 394 in 20242025
Lenny in the UK, year by year
YearBoysRank
2025384#154
2024394#151
2023384#156
2022353#165
2021379#163
2020355#168
2019376#163
2018380#166
2017370#170
2016276#225
2015256#247
2014269#233
2013205#271
2012176#298
2011182#284
2010155#324
2009130#346
2008140#324
2007103#394
200696#396
2005104#340
200463#475
200353#508
200232#667
200123#818
200028#713
199917#959
199815#1,016
19976#1,853
19966#1,840

How popular is Lenny in the US?

Rank in 2025
1,418th among boys
Babies in 2025
128 about 1 in 13,000 boys
Five-year trend
Rising up 35% in five years
Same name in a class
under 1% chance among 15 boys

In 2025, 128 boys in the US were named Lenny, making it the 1,418th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,655th. Its busiest year was 1961, with 199 boys. It first appears in the records in 1914. 61 girls were also named Lenny in 2025 (2,778th for girls).

Half of all the boys named Lenny in the US since 1880 were born between 1962 and 2008, the years shaded on the chart below.

In 2025, 136 boys in the US were given Lenny or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,237, up from #1,418 for this spelling alone.

Girls were 14% of the babies named Lenny in the US in 1943, and 32% in 2025.

1914Busiest: 199 in 19612025
Lenny in the US, year by year
YearBoysRank
2025128#1,418
2024137#1,371
2023133#1,390
2022122#1,479
2021113#1,546
202096#1,655
2019105#1,582
201894#1,679
201796#1,644
2016122#1,421
2015165#1,141
201496#1,619
2013115#1,433
2012119#1,398
2011139#1,244
2010144#1,228
200998#1,617
2008102#1,565
200799#1,576
2006104#1,467
200588#1,571
200481#1,601
200360#1,932
200281#1,526
200164#1,759
200062#1,764
199948#1,992
199857#1,765
199727#2,819
199633#2,375
199553#1,677
199456#1,628
199361#1,507
199243#1,879
199162#1,437
199055#1,525
198953#1,532
198848#1,520
198761#1,246
198666#1,160
198552#1,332
198443#1,457
198372#1,040
198298#903
198177#1,037
198095#911
1979136#740
1978118#774
1977130#746
1976139#706
1975141#700
197491#841
197390#839
1972108#766
1971121#742
1970118#759
1969115#727
1968119#693
1967118#685
1966132#644
1965132#649
1964152#629
1963173#598
1962177#586
1961199#555
1960197#560
1959164#603
1958153#621
1957157#612
1956111#702
195591#762
195489#753
195371#851
195262#895
195147#1,039
195049#988
194959#898
194877#773
194768#838
194669#799
194556#837
194447#935
194342#1,037
194232#1,228
194126#1,300
194035#1,107
193922#1,425
193820#1,521
193716#1,756
193612#2,062
193515#1,837
193413#2,022
19337#3,003
19320–
19316#3,389
19300–
19297#3,245
19280–
19270–
19266#3,706
19258#3,153
19245#4,345
19238#3,173
19220–
19210–
19207#3,488
19198#3,114
19180–
19170–
19160–
19150–
19145#3,263

Names like Lenny

Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.

Rory, Joey, Rudy, Sonny, Reggie, Cody, Toby, Robin, Bobby, Leonardo, Brody, Zachary

Other spellings of Lenny

Lennie, Lenni

Names related to Lenny

Lennon, Len, Lennan, Lenna, Lennyn, Lenin, Leann, Leanny

More Germanic names

Amelia, Liam, Henry, Charlotte, William, Archie, Charlie, Emma, Freddie, Ella, Harry, Millie, Albie, Matilda, Louie, Miles

Every Germanic name

Sources

Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.

To cite this page: Nameling, “Lenny: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/lenny, updated 20 October 2026.