Given name & surname
Lucius
“surrounded by light”
Lucius is a variant of Lucian. One Latin interpretation is “surrounded by light.” Its derivation is not certain.
Original LatinL.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Lucius is a variant of Lucian. One Latin interpretation is “surrounded by light.” Its derivation is not certain.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Latin, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
From Latin Lūcius, from Archaic Latin Loucios, from Proto-Italic *Loukjos, from Proto-Italic *louks, from Proto-Indo-European *léwks, built from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- + *-s.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Lucius appears in Romans 16:21, Acts 13:1, Acts 11:20 and 1 other passage.
- Romans 16:21
- Acts 13:1
- Acts 11:20
- Acts 13:7
From biblical name research
Lucius through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 10,108
- 10,108 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 189 babies
- 2025
- 189
- #1,129 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +9%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 189 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,129 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 8.9% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (26). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,036 as a first name in 2020; 1,969 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.
Lucius’s family of names
In French usage, Lucius has a diminutive in Lucille. Lucius has a feminine form in Lucy. In English usage, Lucius has a conventional equivalent in the Italian form Lucio.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Lucius has relatives in 17 languages. Lines run from its Latin roots to each of them.
Latinwhere Lucius comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 29
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Lucasequivalent
- Lucaequivalent
- Lukeequivalent
- Lucyfeminine form
- Lukaequivalent
- Luciafeminine form · English
- Lukasequivalent
- Lucienderivative
Show 21 moreShow fewer
- Luciefeminine form · French
- Luciosee also · Italian, Spanish
- Lucifeminine form · English
- Loukasequivalent
- Lucequivalent
- Luukequivalent
- Luukasequivalent
- Lūcijsequivalent
- Люсиfeminine form · Russian
- LúcioPortuguese
- LucjuszPolish
- Łukaszequivalent
- LuciôVietnamese
- LuciuszHungarian
- ΛούκιοςAncient Greek, Greek
- 𐌋𐌅ett
- 𐌋𐌖ett
- 𐌋𐌖𐌅𐌂𐌄ett
- 𐌋𐌖𐌗𐌉ett
- 𐌋𐌖𐌂𐌉ett
- Лу́цийBulgarian
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Lucius
- Lucius D. ClayUnited States general (1897–1978)
- Lucius ShepardAmerican writer (1943–2014)
- Lucius AllenAmerican basketball player (born 1947)
- Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus LamarAmerican lawyer, politician and judge (1825-1893)
- Lucky MillinderAmerican bandleader (1910–1966)
- Lucius LyonAmerican politician (1800–1851)
- Lucius Iwejuru UgorjiNigerian catholic archbishopborn 1952
- Lucius Richard O'BrienCanadian artist (1832-1899)
- Lucius of AlexandriaPatriarch of Alexandria in 363 and from 373 to 380
Characters named Lucius: Lucius Fox (fictional character throughout the DC Universe), Lucius Tiberius (legendary Western Roman Emperor).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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