Lyanna
A feminine name of Italian origin, perhaps derived from the flower lilac.
Name Census estimates that about 3,437 living Americans carry the first name Lyanna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lyanna today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lyanna births was 2019 (500 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lyanna. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Lyanna with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Lyanna is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 9 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
3.4K
~ 1 in 99,725 Americans
Peak year
2019
500 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#957
Tracked since 1975
Census
Lyanna in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,916 people with the first name Lyanna, which placed it at #7,791 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
#7,791
National first-name rank
People counted
1.9K
1,916 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
46.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lyanna
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lyanna is Hispanic at 46.5%. The next largest groups are White (31.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%). 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 Lyanna 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 Lyanna at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino46.5% · 890
- White31.1% · 596
- Asian and Pacific Islander9.9% · 189
- Two or more races6.3% · 121
- Black or African American5.4% · 104
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 16
Popularity
Lyanna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lyanna from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 1,661 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
Lyanna 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 Lyanna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lyannas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Lyanna, while South Carolina, Nevada, New Mexico recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 88 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lyanna
The name Lyanna is a variant of the name Liana, which is derived from the Latin word "liana," meaning "a type of woody vine." This name has its roots in ancient Rome, where these vines were a common sight in the Mediterranean region.
In the Middle Ages, the name Liana became popular among European nobility, particularly in Italy and France. It was often associated with grace, beauty, and a connection to nature. The variant spelling Lyanna emerged during this time, likely influenced by regional dialects and linguistic shifts.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Lyanna can be found in a 12th-century French text, where it was used to describe a character renowned for her elegance and charm. However, the name remained relatively uncommon until the Renaissance period.
During the Renaissance, the name Lyanna gained popularity among artists and intellectuals who were inspired by classical Roman and Greek culture. It was seen as a symbol of refinement and appreciation for the natural world. Notable individuals bearing this name from this era include Lyanna Sforza (1463-1524), an Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts.
In the 17th century, the name Lyanna made its way to England, where it was adopted by some aristocratic families. One notable figure was Lyanna Cavendish (1598-1668), a writer and philosopher who was part of the intellectual circle surrounding the renowned poet John Donne.
The 19th century saw the name Lyanna gain traction in other parts of Europe, particularly in Germany and Scandinavia. A notable bearer of this name was Lyanna Brandt (1819-1892), a German painter and one of the first women to be admitted to the prestigious Dresden Academy of Fine Arts.
In the 20th century, the name Lyanna experienced a resurgence in popularity, particularly in the United States and other English-speaking countries. One of the most famous individuals with this name was Lyanna Mormont, a fictional character from the popular "Game of Thrones" book and television series, known for her fierce loyalty and bravery.
Other notable individuals with the name Lyanna include Lyanna Gooden (born 1980), an American model and actress, and Lyanna Gomez (born 1992), a Colombian-American actress and singer.
People
Lyanna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lyanna 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
Lyanna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lyanna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,437 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lyanna 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 99,725 US residents.
Is Lyanna a common name?
We classify Lyanna as "Rare". It ranks above 95.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,466 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lyanna most popular?
The single biggest year for Lyanna was 2019, when 500 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lyanna is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lyanna in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,916 people with the name Lyanna, or 0.63 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,791 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 Lyanna 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 Lyanna?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lyanna appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,912 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Lyanna?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lyanna is Hispanic at 46.5%. The next largest groups are White (31.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%). 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 Lyanna most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Lyanna in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.5% (890 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 Lyanna in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lyanna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lyanna 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 Lyanna still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lyanna 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 Lyanna 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 share the name Lyanna?
Find out how many people share the name Lyanna on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.