Given name & surname
Lea
“from the meadow”
Lea is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the meadow.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “from the meadow.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Lea is a variant of Lee. The history of Lee gives this family its wider story. Lee’s naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name. In Norwegian use, Lea has a related form in Leah. The history of Leah gives this family its wider story. In biblical tradition, Leah is the name of the elder sister of Rachel.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Lea through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 34,468
- 620 boys · 33,848 girls
- Most popular year
- 1970
- 600 babies
- 2025
- 321
- #848 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −10%
- Steady
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 0% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 321 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 848 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 9.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 593 in 1970. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (48). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 30,568 as a first name in 2020; 8,351 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Lea’s family of names
In Czech usage, Lea is a diminutive of Leontýna. Lea has a related form in Lee. Lea has a related form in Lee.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Lea has relatives in 12 languages. Lines run from its English roots to each of them.
Nicknames & forms 8
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 11
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Leiaequivalent
- Leyaequivalent
- Laiaequivalent
- Lyaequivalent
- LejaFinnish
- ΛείαGreek
- LéaFrench
- LíaSpanish, Galician
Show 3 moreShow fewer
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Lea
- Lea MicheleAmerican actress and singerborn 1986
- Lea ThompsonAmerican actressborn 1961
- Lea SchüllerGerman association football playerborn 1997
- Lea SirkSlovene singerborn 1989
- Lea DeLariaAmerican actor, comedian and singerborn 1958
- Lea YpiAlbanian philosopher and professor of political theory at the London School of Economicsborn 1979
- Lea PadovaniItalian actress (1923–1991)1920–1991
- Lea FriedrichGerman cyclistborn 2000
- Lea PericoliItalian tennis player (1935–2024)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Lea, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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Tina
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Lisa
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Liza
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“woman of the sea”
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Shelley
“from the bank's meadow” · “from the meadow's ledge”
>99% girls
Toni
“a flourishing man; from an ancient Roman family”
8% boys · 92% girls