Leni

Meaning: Uncertain; possibly shining light or torch
Origin: Greek — German short form of Helene or Magdalena

Girl's name · #1179 in the US (2025) · Trending

Popularity over time

Leni is moving up the charts. First recorded in 1938, it stood at #1179 in 2025 — its strongest showing yet; about 1,900 girls have been named Leni along the way.

Across the states

See where Leni is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 22 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Leni ranks in other countries and regions.

#60 in Austria (2025) · #110 in Switzerland (2025) · #220 in Slovenia (2025) · #259 in N. Ireland (2025) · #474 in Scotland (2025) · #491 in Italy (2024) · #514 in England & Wales (2025) · #718 in Ireland (2025) · #750 in Canada (2025) · #786 in Belgium (2025) · #859 in Poland (2024) · #1,533 in Sweden (2024) and 4 more.

Famous Lenis

Leni Riefenstahl — German filmmaker (1902–2003)
Leni Robredo — Vice President of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022 (born 1965)
Leni Klum — German and American model (born 2004)
Leni Parker — Canadian television and film actress (born 1965)
Leni Sinclair — German-born American photographer (born 1940)

In stories & tradition

Leni Milchstraße^it — Sakura Wars 2: Thou Shalt Not Die (video game)
Leni Loud — Animated character in The Loud House
Leni — Operatic character in the opera Der Prozeß by Gottfried von Einem

What Lenis become

Among 146 notable people named Leni:

Entertainers appear 1.86× more often than among typical names — e.g. Leni Riefenstahl, German filmmaker (1902–2003).

Spellings & nicknames

Together with its spelling variants Lennie (#2557) and Lenny (#2799), Leni would rank around #833 with about 330 births last year — the newborns split about 60/21/19 across Leni, Lennie, and Lenny.

Similar names: Lennie · Marlow · Lenna · Henny · Hartley · Tilly

Browse more girl names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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