Leeander
A masculine name of Greek origin meaning "lion man".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Leeander. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Leeander today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Leeander births was 1985 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Leeander. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Leeander. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1985
5 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
1985 SSA rank
#7,145
Tracked since 1985
Popularity
Leeander: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Leeander 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 Leeander during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Leeander
The name Leeander is of Greek origin, derived from the words "leon" meaning lion and "andros" meaning man. It can be traced back to ancient Greece, where it was a popular name among the aristocratic class.
Leeander was the name of a young man from the city of Abydos, who lived in the 7th century BC. He was the lover of the priestess Hero, who lived across the Hellespont (modern-day Dardanelles Strait) in Sestos. Their tragic love story, in which Leeander drowned while attempting to swim across the strait to meet Hero, was immortalized in the Greek myth of Hero and Leander.
In Greek mythology, Leeander was also the name of one of the sons of King Priam of Troy. He was killed during the Trojan War by the Greek warrior Ajax.
The name Leeander was also popular among early Christians, as it was borne by several saints and martyrs, including Saint Leander of Seville (c. 534-600 AD), a Spanish bishop and writer who played a significant role in the conversion of the Visigoths to Christianity.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Leeander can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BC.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Leeander, including:
1. Leander (fl. 5th century AD), a Greek mathematician and philosopher who lived in Alexandria.
2. Leander van Ess (1772-1847), a German Catholic theologian and writer.
3. Leander J. McCormick (1835-1900), an American businessman and inventor, best known for developing the mechanical reaper.
4. Leander Paes (born 1973), a professional tennis player from India, known for his successful doubles career.
5. Leander Haußmann (born 1959), a German film director and screenwriter.
People
Leeander + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Leeander 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
Leeander: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Leeander?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Leeander 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Leeander a common name?
We classify Leeander as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Leeander most popular?
The single biggest year for Leeander was 1985, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Leeander is about 39 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 Leeander in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Leeander a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Leeander 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 Leeander still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Leeander 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 Leeander 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 are named Leeander?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.