Lee: Meaning, origin and popularity

Pronounced LEE · 1 syllable

Lee means “meadow”, from English.

From Old English lea, the dative case of leah (“meadow”), originally to denote someone who lived near a meadow.

How popular is Lee?

Lee was the #725 name in the US in 2025, given to 387 babies. Its use has been fairly steady over the last decade. It peaked around 1880.

Babies named Lee in the US by five-year period, relative to its peak (around 1880).

Half of US adults named Lee are older than 61; most are between 32 and 84. (Estimated from US births by year and life tables.)

Names that real brothers and sisters of people named Lee have, from family records on Wikidata, most common first.

Chosen by the same families or with a similar style and era.

Lee means “meadow”. It comes from English.

Lee is pronounced LEE.

Lee was the #725 name in the US in 2025, given to 387 babies. Its use has been fairly steady over the last decade. It peaked around 1880.

Half of US adults named Lee are older than 61. Most are between 32 and 84.