Brentlee
From Old English brent meaning "burned, alight" and lee meaning "meadow".
Name Census estimates that about 933 living Americans carry the first name Brentlee. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 86.0% of registrations being male. The average person named Brentlee today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Brentlee births was 2014 (97 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Brentlee. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
933
~ 1 in 367,368 Americans
Peak year
2014
97 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,574
Tracked since 1990
Gender
Gender distribution for Brentlee
Brentlee leans heavily male at 86.0% of total registrations, but 132 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Brentlee as a male name
- Ranked #4,574 in 2024
- 22 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2015 (87 births)
Brentlee as a female name
- Ranked #15,644 in 2024
- 5 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2012 (15 births)
Popularity
Brentlee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Brentlee from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 709 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Brentlee by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Brentlee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Brentlees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas recorded the most babies named Brentlee, while West Virginia, Oklahoma, Arkansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 21 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Brentlee
Brentlee is a unique and intriguing given name with a rich history that spans across various cultures and time periods. Its origins can be traced back to the Old English language, where it is believed to have evolved from the combination of two distinct words: "brent" and "leah."
The word "brent" in Old English referred to a steep or high place, often associated with hills or ridges. On the other hand, "leah" was a term used to describe a woodland, forest, or meadow. Thus, the name Brentlee could be interpreted as "the high meadow" or "the ridge in the woods."
During the Anglo-Saxon era, which spanned from the 5th to the 11th centuries, names derived from natural features or geographic locations were quite common. As such, Brentlee may have been a name given to individuals born or residing in areas characterized by elevated meadows or woodlands.
While the name Brentlee did not appear in any significant ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been documented in various historical records throughout the centuries. One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086.
Over the course of history, several notable individuals have borne the name Brentlee. One such figure was Brentlee Farnsworth (1818-1892), an American businessman and philanthropist known for his contributions to the development of the telegraph system. Another prominent Brentlee was Brentlee Whitworth (1887-1967), a British engineer and inventor who revolutionized the field of precision manufacturing.
In the literary realm, Brentlee Ainsworth (1905-1976) was a celebrated English novelist and playwright whose works explored themes of adventure, romance, and historical fiction. Brentlee Cartwright (1932-2008), on the other hand, was an influential American jazz saxophonist and composer who left an indelible mark on the world of music.
Lastly, Brentlee Sinclair (1944-2002) was a renowned Canadian environmental activist and advocate for Indigenous rights, who dedicated her life to preserving the natural heritage and cultural traditions of her people.
These remarkable individuals, spanning different eras and fields, have all carried the name Brentlee, adding to its rich tapestry of meanings and associations throughout history.
People
Brentlee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Brentlee as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Brentlee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Brentlee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 933 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Brentlee going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 367,368 US residents.
Is Brentlee a common name?
We classify Brentlee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 940 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Brentlee most popular?
The single biggest year for Brentlee was 2014, when 97 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Brentlee is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Brentlee in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Brentlee a male name?
Yes, 86.0% of people registered as Brentlee in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Brentlee still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Brentlee in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Brentlee can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Brentlee as a first name?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people share the name Brentlee at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.