Lynne
Typically derived from a Scottish surname referring to a place near a waterfall or pool.
Name Census estimates that about 41,910 living Americans carry the first name Lynne. It is a predominantly female name (99.3% of registrations). The average person named Lynne today is around 67 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lynne births was 1960 (2,471 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lynne. 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
- • Although Lynne is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 458 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • The typical person named Lynne is about 67 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Lynnes were born before 1969.
- • Compared to the 1950s, recent registration numbers for Lynne have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
42K
~ 1 in 8,178 Americans
Peak year
1960
2,471 babies that year
Average age
67
years old
1969 SSA rank
#3,479
Tracked since 1907
Gender
Gender distribution for Lynne
Out of the 62,410 babies given the name Lynne since 1880, 99.3% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Lynne as a male name
- Ranked #3,479 in 1969
- 8 male births in 1969
- Peak: 1941 (21 births)
Lynne as a female name
- Ranked #14,507 in 2024
- 6 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1960 (2,458 births)
Popularity
Lynne: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lynne from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 22,291 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lynne 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 Lynne during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lynnes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. New York, California, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Lynne, while Alaska, Nevada, Wyoming recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,152 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lynne
The name Lynne originated from the Old German name Linden, which means "linden tree". It first appeared in the English language during the Middle Ages, around the 12th century. The earliest recorded spelling was Linn, which later evolved into Lynne.
Lynne was a popular name among the Anglo-Saxons and was often given to children born near linden trees or in areas where these trees were abundant. The linden tree held significant symbolic meaning in various European cultures, representing strength, resilience, and protection.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lynne can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This document mentions a landowner named Lynne, who held property in the county of Lincolnshire.
In the 14th century, the name gained further prominence with the birth of Lynne de Lyle, a prominent English noblewoman and landowner. She was known for her involvement in various political and legal disputes during the reign of Edward III.
During the Renaissance period, the name Lynne was associated with several notable figures. One of them was Lynne Bradstreet, a Puritan poet who lived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th century. Born in 1612, she is considered one of the earliest English poets in North America.
Another noteworthy individual with the name Lynne was Lynne Cheney, an American writer and former Second Lady of the United States. Born in 1941, she is known for her contributions to the fields of education and literature.
In the realm of literature, Lynne Reid Banks, a British writer born in 1929, gained recognition for her children's novels, including the acclaimed "The Indian in the Cupboard" series.
Lynne Truss, a British writer and journalist born in 1955, is famous for her best-selling book "Eats, Shoots & Leaves," a humorous guide on punctuation and grammar.
Lastly, Lynne Thigpen, an American actress and singer born in 1948, is remembered for her roles in various television shows and films, including her performance as "The Chief" on the sitcom "Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?"
People
Lynne + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lynne 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
Lynne: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lynne?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 41,910 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lynne 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 8,178 US residents.
Is Lynne a common name?
We classify Lynne as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 62,410 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lynne most popular?
The single biggest year for Lynne was 1960, when 2,471 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lynne is about 67 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lynne a female name?
Yes, 99.3% of people registered as Lynne 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.