Ileane
A feminine variant of Helen deriving from the Greek meaning "bright, shining one".
Name Census estimates that about 47 living Americans carry the first name Ileane. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ileane today is around 79 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ileane births was 1927 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ileane. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Ileane is about 79 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Ileanes were born before 1957.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ileane. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
47
~ 1 in 7,292,645 Americans
Peak year
1927
21 babies that year
Average age
79
years old
1964 SSA rank
#7,155
Tracked since 1920
Popularity
Ileane: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ileane from the 1920s through to the 1960s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 112 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ileane 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 Ileane during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ileanes live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ileane
The name Ileane is derived from the Greek name Ileana, which itself is a feminine form of the Greek name Elias, meaning "the Lord is my God." The name can be traced back to the Byzantine Empire in the Middle Ages.
Ileane was a relatively uncommon name in ancient times, but it did appear in some historical records and texts from the Byzantine period. One of the earliest known references to the name is in a 12th-century manuscript detailing the lives of saints and martyrs in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
One notable historical figure with the name Ileane was Ileane of Trebizond, a Byzantine princess who lived in the 14th century. She was the daughter of the Emperor Alexios III of Trebizond and played a significant role in the political intrigues of the time.
Another famous Ileane was Ileane Comnenus, a member of the influential Comnenus dynasty that ruled the Byzantine Empire in the 11th and 12th centuries. She was a princess and the daughter of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos.
In the 16th century, there was an Ileane Ducas, a noblewoman from the Ducas family, which was a prominent Byzantine aristocratic lineage. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her support of various cultural and religious institutions.
Moving to more modern times, Ileane Meyer (1898-1985) was a German actress and singer who enjoyed a successful career in the early 20th century. She appeared in numerous films and stage productions and was particularly renowned for her performances in operettas.
Finally, Ileane Santos (1986-present) is a contemporary Brazilian model and actress. She has graced the covers of numerous fashion magazines and has appeared in several television shows and films in Brazil.
People
Ileane + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ileane as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with I
Other first names starting with I with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ileane: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ileane?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 47 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ileane 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 7,292,645 US residents.
Is Ileane a common name?
We classify Ileane as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 230 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ileane most popular?
The single biggest year for Ileane was 1927, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ileane is about 79 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ileane a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ileane in the SSA data are female. 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.
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.