Lain
An English feminine name of uncertain origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 490 living Americans carry the first name Lain. It is a predominantly male name (94.6% of registrations). The average person named Lain today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lain births was 2004 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lain. 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
490
~ 1 in 699,499 Americans
Peak year
2004
26 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,505
Tracked since 1973
Gender
Gender distribution for Lain
Lain leans heavily male at 94.6% of total registrations, but 27 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Lain as a male name
- Ranked #7,505 in 2024
- 11 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2011 (25 births)
Lain as a female name
- Ranked #12,853 in 2023
- 7 female births in 2023
- Peak: 2004 (8 births)
Popularity
Lain: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lain from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 174 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Lain remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lain 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 Lain during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lains live
Origin
Meaning and history of Lain
The name Lain has its roots in the Gaelic and Anglo-Saxon languages. It is believed to have originated from the Old English word "laen," which means "land" or "territory." The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to the 6th century CE.
In Gaelic, the name Lain is derived from the word "lann," which means "enclosure" or "dwelling place." This connection suggests that the name may have been used to identify someone who lived in a particular area or owned a significant amount of land.
One of the earliest historical references to the name Lain can be found in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which records the events of England from the 5th to the 12th centuries. The Chronicle mentions a person named Lain who was a thegn (a member of the landed gentry) during the reign of King Edward the Confessor in the 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name Lain was relatively common in parts of Scotland and Ireland. One notable figure with this name was Lain Mor, a 13th-century Scottish chieftain and warrior who played a significant role in the Wars of Scottish Independence against England.
In the 16th century, there was a Welsh poet and clergyman named Lain Glyn, who was known for his religious writings and contributions to the development of the Welsh language.
Another historical figure with the name Lain was Lain Coll, a Scottish theologian and philosopher who lived in the 17th century. He was known for his influential works on metaphysics and natural philosophy.
In the 19th century, there was a Scottish mathematician named Lain Muirhead who made significant contributions to the field of algebraic geometry and the development of quaternions.
While the name Lain has its roots in ancient languages and cultures, it has been used throughout history in various parts of Europe, particularly in the British Isles and Celtic regions. Despite its historical prominence, the name is relatively uncommon in modern times.
People
Lain + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lain as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lain: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lain?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 490 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lain 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 699,499 US residents.
Is Lain a common name?
We classify Lain as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 496 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lain most popular?
The single biggest year for Lain was 2004, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lain is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lain a male name?
Yes, 94.6% of people registered as Lain 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.
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.