Given name & surname · also Old English
Lee
“from the meadow”
Lee 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 Old English.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Lee through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 295,926
- 233,627 boys · 62,299 girls
- Most popular year
- 1956
- 5,448 babies
- 2025
- 387
- #727 for boys · #5,832 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +7%
- Steady
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 94% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 366 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 727 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 8.7% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 3,682 in 1951. It also appeared in 21 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (30). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 164,578 as a first name in 2020; 695,657 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.
Lee’s family of names
In English usage, Lee is a diminutive of Leonard. In English usage, Lee as a surname shares an earlier linguistic root with Ly. Lee has a related form in Leah.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Lee has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its Old English roots to each of them.
16 related names in 5 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 18
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Lee
- Lee Harvey OswaldAmerican former marine who assassinated John F. Kennedy (1939–1963)
- Lee MarvinAmerican actor (1924–1987)
- Lee Van CleefAmerican actor (1925–1989)
- Lee de ForestAmerican inventor (1873–1961)
- Alexander McQueenBritish fashion designer (1969–2010)
- Lee GrantAmerican actressborn 1925
- Lee RemickAmerican actress (1935-1991)
- Leland H. HartwellAmerican biologistborn 1939
- Lee StrasbergAmerican theatre director, actor and acting teacher (1901–1982)
Characters named Lee: Lee Adama (the television series Battlestar Galactica).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Lee, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Dale
“from the small valley” · “from the valley”
97% boys · 3% girls
Kelvin
“a friend of ships; a man of the river”
>99% boys
Glade
“from the meadow in the C woods” · “from the clearing in the woods”
>99% boys
Ashbourne
“ash-tree”
88% boys · 12% girls
Mannley
“from the hero's meadow; from the man's meadow”
>99% boys
Hockley
“from the high meadow”
>99% boys
Rishley
“from the untamed meadow”
>99% boys
Wickley
“from the village meadow”
>99% boys