Lone
Meaning "solitary" or "lone", derived from the English word meaning alone or isolated.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Lone. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Lone today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lone births was 1882 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lone. 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 Lone. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1882
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1928 SSA rank
#4,490
Tracked since 1882
Census
Lone in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 354 people with the first name Lone, which placed it at #26,327 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#26,327
National first-name rank
People counted
354
354 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
63.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lone
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lone is White at 63.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (15.3%) and Black (15.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Lone described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Lone at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.0% · 223
- Asian and Pacific Islander15.3% · 54
- Black or African American15.0% · 53
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 5
- Two or more races1.1% · 4
Popularity
Lone: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lone from the 1880s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1880s, 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
Lone 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 Lone 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 Lone
The name Lone has its origins in Old Norse, the language spoken by the Vikings and other Scandinavian peoples during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old Norse word "lone," which means "alone" or "solitary." This name likely emerged as a descriptive nickname or byname for someone who lived a solitary life or was known for spending time alone.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lone can be found in the Icelandic Sagas, a collection of historical narratives and stories written in the 13th and 14th centuries. In these texts, the name appears as a byname or nickname for various characters, reflecting their solitary nature or lifestyle.
In the 15th century, a Danish nobleman named Lone Rosenborg (c. 1420-1488) gained prominence as a military commander and advisor to King Christian I of Denmark. His name, which was likely a byname or nickname, became associated with a sense of strength, independence, and solitary leadership.
Another notable figure with the name Lone was the Norwegian explorer and whaler Lone Hvalross (1756-1832). He gained fame for his daring expeditions to the Arctic regions, where he often faced treacherous conditions and long periods of isolation, reflecting the solitary nature of his profession.
In the literary world, Lone Skjold (1891-1967) was a Danish author and poet known for her introspective works that explored themes of solitude and self-discovery. Her name, which means "lone shield" in Danish, embodied her introspective and independent spirit.
Lastly, Lone Hultman (1932-2003) was a Swedish artist and sculptor renowned for her abstract and minimalist works. Her name, which reflected her unique and solitary artistic vision, became synonymous with the avant-garde art movement of the 20th century.
While the name Lone may have originated as a descriptive nickname or byname, it has evolved over time to represent a sense of independence, self-reliance, and a willingness to embrace solitude. Its historical roots in Old Norse and its appearances in various cultural contexts have imbued this name with a rich tapestry of meanings and associations.
People
Lone + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lone 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
Lone: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lone?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lone 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 - US residents.
Is Lone a common name?
We classify Lone as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lone most popular?
The single biggest year for Lone was 1882, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lone is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lone in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 354 people with the name Lone, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #26,327 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Lone in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Lone?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Lone on both sides of the split. Of the 349 people counted with this name, 136 were male (39.0%) and 213 were female (61.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Lone?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lone is White at 63.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (15.3%) and Black (15.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Lone most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Lone in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.0% (223 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Lone in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lone a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lone 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 Lone still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lone 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 Lone 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.
How many people are called Lone?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.