Leona
Leona was the 429th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 723 babies. Its best year was 1904, when it ranked 69th; the most babies were born in 1918 (3,335). Over the last ten years it has moved up 253 places. More babies were named Leona in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning lion · Latin, Greek
Say it lee-OH-nuh /liˈoʊnə/
- Rank in 2025
- #429 girls, up 55 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 723girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19183,335 babies
- Total since 1880
- 113,624babies recorded
What does the name Leona mean?
Leona is a feminine form of Leon, built by adding the Latin feminine ending -a, as Wiktionary explains. Leon and Leo come from the Greek and Latin words for lion, leōn and leo; DMNES gives the same meaning under Leo and records it as the name of many popes and Byzantine emperors. Leonie is a French feminine form of the same name.
λέων (Ancient Greek, “lion”)leo (Latin, “lion”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Leon, Leo, Leonie.
See also: Latin names, names that mean an animal.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Leona', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Leo', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Wiktionary, entry 'Leon', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
Leona popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 294 since 1901.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #429 | 723 |
| 2020 | #484 | 634 |
| 2010 | #990 | 256 |
| 2000 | #1,639 | 108 |
| 1990 | #1,497 | 104 |
| 1980 | #904 | 167 |
| 1970 | #609 | 285 |
| 1960 | #455 | 461 |
| 1950 | #298 | 681 |
| 1940 | #183 | 1,028 |
| 1930 | #130 | 1,872 |
| 1920 | #89 | 3,166 |
| 1910 | #79 | 1,220 |
| 1900 | #85 | 825 |
| 1890 | #120 | 332 |
| 1880 | #119 | 137 |
How popular is Leona, counting every spelling?
Leona is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #433 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #429 for Leona on its own. Together these spellings went to 757 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leona | 723 | #429 | 3,123 |
| Leonna | 28 | #4,826 | 146 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Leona?
723 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Leona (0.20 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Leona born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 12 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Leona.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Leona?
About 29,400 people born in the US named Leona are alive today, with a median age of 61; half are between 14 and 78. That makes Leona a name most people associate with older generations. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Leona by state
How common Leona was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Minnesota (2.6×), Wisconsin (2.5×), Washington (2.3×), Oregon (2.2×), Iowa (2.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Alabama, Louisiana, Nebraska.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Leona: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Leona, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Leona · Sibling names for Leona
Questions about the name Leona
What does Leona mean?
Leona means “lion” (Latin, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Leona?
Leona was the 429th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 723 babies. Its best year was 1904, when it ranked 69th; the most babies were born in 1918 (3,335). Over the last ten years it has moved up 253 places. More babies were named Leona in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Leona a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Leona in the US.
Where is Leona most popular?
In 2021–2025, Leona was most common in Minnesota (1.02 per 1,000 girls), followed by Wisconsin and Washington.