Lenny

Did you know?

A few things about Lenny you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Lenny

Lenny Wilkens

American basketball player and coach (1937–2025)

Choose Lenny and your child shares a first name with Lenny Wilkens, an American basketball player and coach. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Lenny, like who?” Lenny Wilkens's Wikipedia article is available in 40 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Lenny Wilkens on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Samuel Morse /Released, Public domain (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 13,351 baby boys born in the US in 2025 was named Lenny, 128 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Lenny would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryLenny first shows up in US birth records in 1914, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 111 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIts best year was 1961, when it reached #555.
• 📈Then vs nowLenny is 2.4× more common today than it was in 2000. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 31,646 baby boys; in 2025, about 1 in 13,351.
• 🚀TrendLenny has climbed 237 places in the US rankings over the last five years and now sits at #1,418. Fast risers like this often keep climbing, so expect to hear it more.
• 📍Where it's lovedLenny is most popular in Massachusetts, where it ranks #789, followed by Washington (#801) and Illinois (#935). It's in the top 1,000 in 3 states.
• ⚖️Boy or girlLenny is given to both boys and girls: 68% of the 189 babies named Lenny in 2025 were boys. That makes it one of the names that truly works for either.
• 💬MeaningLenny is an English form of Leonard, which means “brave as a lion”.

About the name Lenny

Lenny is a gender-neutral name of Hebrew origin meaning “brave as a lion”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with L and ending in “-nny”. US birth records list Lenny for boys from 1914 to 2025, in 102 of those 112 years. Its best year was 1961, when it ranked #555 among boy names. In 2025 it ranked #1,418, with 128 babies. Of the 189 US babies named Lenny in 2025, 32% were girls and 68% were boys.

Origin:Hebrew names