Lesley
Girl nameLesley has been given to 39,098 babies in the U.S. since 1882. It peaked in 1980. In 2025, about 1 in 53,576 girls was named Lesley.
Meaning & origin
From a placename in Aberdeenshire, originally Lesslyn, Scottish Gaelic lios cuileann (“garden of hollies”).
Origin: surnames
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
39,098
Peak year
1980 (981 babies)
Rank in 2025
Below top 1000
First recorded
1882
10-year trend
▼ -71%
Gender split
88% girls / 12% boys
Rank through the decades
Lesley's rank among U.S. girl names at 25-year milestones.
| Year | Girls rank | Boys rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | — | #879 |
| 1925 | — | #927 |
| 1950 | #510 | #860 |
| 1975 | #321 | — |
| 2000 | #430 | — |
— means outside the top 1000 that year.
Spellings & variants
Names one letter away from Lesley — alternate spellings parents actually use.
Famous people named Lesley
Twiggy
British model, actress and singer
Lesley Manville
British actress (born 1956)
Lesley Gore
American singer (1946–2015)
Lesley Ann Warren
American actress
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Lesley.
Sibling name ideas for Lesley
Same era and popularity as Lesley, avoiding matching initials or rhymes.
FAQ
How popular is the name Lesley?
Lesley has been given to 39,098 babies in the U.S. since 1882. It ranked below the top 1000 in 2025.
When did the name Lesley peak?
Lesley peaked in 1980, when 981 babies were given the name.
Is Lesley a girl or boy name?
Lesley is primarily a girl name (88% of babies named Lesley are girls).
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