Leenora
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly combining Lena with a Hebrew component.
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Leenora. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Leenora today is around 90 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Leenora births was 1934 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Leenora. 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 Leenora is about 90 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Leenoras were born before 1946.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Leenora. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1934
6 babies that year
Average age
90
years old
1934 SSA rank
#4,085
Tracked since 1900
Popularity
Leenora: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Leenora from the 1900s through to the 1930s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Leenora 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 Leenora during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Leenora
The name Leenora is a feminine given name with roots tracing back to ancient Greece. It is derived from the Greek words "leōn," meaning lion, and "hora," meaning time or season. Therefore, the name Leenora can be interpreted as "the season of the lion" or "the lioness."
In Greek mythology, the lion symbolized strength, courage, and royalty. The name Leenora was likely borne by women of noble or regal lineage during the Classical period of ancient Greece, which spanned from the 5th to the 4th century BCE. It is possible that the name appeared in ancient Greek texts or records, but no specific instances have been definitively recorded.
The earliest recorded use of the name Leenora dates back to the 16th century in Europe, where it was a variant spelling of the name Eleonora. One notable bearer of this name was Eleonora di Toledo (1522-1562), the wife of Cosimo I de' Medici, the Grand Duke of Tuscany. She was a renowned patron of the arts and played a significant role in the cultural and artistic renaissance of Florence during the Italian Renaissance.
Another historical figure named Leenora was Eleonora Gonzaga (1598-1655), an Italian noblewoman and the wife of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor. She was known for her political influence and her role in the Thirty Years' War, a prolonged conflict that engulfed much of Europe in the 17th century.
In the realm of literature, Leenora was the name of a character in the epic poem "The Faerie Queene" by Edmund Spenser (1552-1599). This allegorical work, published in 1590, was one of the longest poems in the English language and a seminal work of English literature.
During the Victorian era, the name Leenora gained popularity in England and other parts of the British Empire. One notable bearer of this name was Eleonora Louisa Montagu (1734-1800), an English writer and feminist who advocated for the education and rights of women.
In more recent times, Leenora Brasfield (1933-2021) was an American actress known for her roles in television shows like "The Waltons" and "Sanford and Son." She had a prolific career in both film and television, spanning several decades.
People
Leenora + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Leenora 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
Leenora: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Leenora?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Leenora 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Leenora a common name?
We classify Leenora as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 16 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Leenora most popular?
The single biggest year for Leenora was 1934, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Leenora is about 90 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 Leenora in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Leenora a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Leenora 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.
Is Leenora still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Leenora 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 Leenora 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 Leenora as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.