Lenisha
A feminine name with origins in West Africa, meaning "daughter of the chief".
Name Census estimates that about 214 living Americans carry the first name Lenisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lenisha today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lenisha births was 1997 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lenisha. 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
214
~ 1 in 1,601,656 Americans
Peak year
1997
17 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
2003 SSA rank
#17,250
Tracked since 1977
Popularity
Lenisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lenisha from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 106 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lenisha 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 Lenisha 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 Lenisha
The name Lenisha is of African origin, derived from the Swahili language spoken in East Africa. It is a combination of the words "leni" meaning "wait" and "isha" meaning "night". The name Lenisha can be interpreted to mean "waiting for the night" or "one who waits until nightfall".
In the 17th century, the name was first recorded among the Swahili people living along the coastal regions of present-day Kenya and Tanzania. During this period, the name was predominantly given to girls born at night or around dusk, signifying the anticipation of their arrival.
While there are no known historical references to the name Lenisha in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been documented in various colonial records from the time of European exploration and settlement in East Africa.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lenisha dates back to 1689, when a Swahili woman by that name was listed in a Portuguese census of the island of Pemba, off the coast of Tanzania.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Lenisha. In the 18th century, Lenisha Mwamba (1732-1801) was a renowned Swahili trader and explorer who traveled extensively across East Africa and the Indian Ocean region.
In the 19th century, Lenisha Kanyama (1825-1892) was a prominent Swahili poet and songwriter whose works celebrated the rich cultural heritage of her people.
During the 20th century, Lenisha Mshindo (1910-1998) was a Tanzanian educator and activist who played a significant role in advocating for women's rights and education in her country.
Lenisha Mussa (1942-2014) was a celebrated Kenyan writer and playwright whose plays explored themes of identity, tradition, and social change in East African societies.
More recently, Lenisha Beckett (1975-present) is a contemporary American artist and sculptor of Swahili descent, known for her captivating installations that blend traditional African motifs with modern aesthetics.
People
Lenisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lenisha 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
Lenisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lenisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 214 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lenisha 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 1,601,656 US residents.
Is Lenisha a common name?
We classify Lenisha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 224 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lenisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Lenisha was 1997, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lenisha is about 36 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lenisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lenisha 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.