Lyna
Pure, bright, or beautiful bright one.
Name Census estimates that about 900 living Americans carry the first name Lyna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lyna today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lyna births was 2004 (30 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lyna. 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
900
~ 1 in 380,838 Americans
Peak year
2004
30 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,956
Tracked since 1911
Popularity
Lyna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lyna from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 222 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Lyna remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lyna 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 Lyna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lynas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Lyna
The name Lyna is believed to have originated from Scandinavian languages, particularly Old Norse. It is derived from the Old Norse word "lind" which means "lime tree" or "linden tree". The name may have initially been used as a reference to someone who lived near a linden tree or a grove of these trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lyna can be found in the Icelandic Sagas, a collection of stories and historical records from medieval Iceland. In the Saga of Grettir the Strong, written in the 13th century, there is a character named Lyna who is mentioned as a wise and respected woman.
During the Viking Age, between the 8th and 11th centuries, the name Lyna may have been relatively common among Scandinavian women. As Vikings explored and settled in various parts of Europe, the name likely spread to other regions as well.
In the 12th century, a Norwegian noblewoman named Lyna Erlingsdottir is recorded as having held significant influence and authority in the region of Trøndelag. She was known for her strong leadership and involvement in political affairs.
Another notable historical figure with the name Lyna was Lyna Jónsdóttir, an Icelandic poet and scholar who lived in the 15th century. She was renowned for her skill in composing poetic verses and her deep knowledge of Icelandic literature and mythology.
In the 16th century, Lyna Gisladottir was a prominent Icelandic woman who played a significant role in the preservation and transmission of traditional Icelandic folktales and oral traditions. Her contributions were instrumental in maintaining the cultural heritage of Iceland.
While the name Lyna has its roots in Scandinavian languages, it has since been adopted and used in various parts of the world, albeit with varying degrees of popularity and cultural significance.
People
Lyna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lyna 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
Lyna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lyna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 900 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lyna 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 380,838 US residents.
Is Lyna a common name?
We classify Lyna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,031 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lyna most popular?
The single biggest year for Lyna was 2004, when 30 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lyna is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lyna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lyna 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.