Leo
1% girls · 99% boys
About Leo
Leo is a strong-yet-friendly name that was common among the Romans, used for fourteen popes, and is now at its highest point ever in the US. Brave but sparky, Leo has ranked in the Top 20 in the US, England and Wales, Armenia, Australia, Slovenia, Germany, Spain and beyond.
Leo for boys#19 US
Derived from the Latin meaning "lion", Leo is one of those names, like Luke and Finn, that many people assume must be short for something but that is authentically a complete name in its own right. That said, Leo can but short for any number of names, from Leonardo in Latinate languages to Leon and Leopold in Germanic languages. We've even heard of little girl Leonoras and Leonies called Leo: How cute is that?
Leo's simplicity makes it an international star, ranking in the Top 100 in countries as diverse as Ireland and Israel, Spain and Sweden, Austria and Australia. Leo is a truly diverse name, a perfect choice for any family crossing countries or blending cultures.
Leo's only real downside is its universal popularity and familiarity. If you call your child Leo, you and they will almost certainly encounter many other Leos over the years of all types and ages. Plus or minus? Or both?
Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem called their son Leo, as did actress Kim Raver, NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon and Kristin Olson.
Famous Leos of the past include Pope Leo the Great, a number of early saints, and Leo Tolstoy, as well as Dead End Kid Gorcey, colorful baseball manager Durocher, influential gallerist Castelli and the leonine MGM icon. There have been Leos seen on everything from The West Wing to Charmed to Grey's Anatomy to Seinfeld's Uncle Leo. In 2025, this was the name chosen by the current Roman Catholic pope, putting Leo in the spotlight once again.
Leo for girls#5492 US
Leo is of course a very popular name for boys and an equally rare one for girls. But 28 baby girls were named Leo in the US last year, and as feminine leonine names such as Leonora and Leonia find more widespread popularity, Leo is popping up as an adorable short form for girls as well as boys.
Pronounced LEE-oh.
As of October 2026, Leo ranked #19 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #18 in 2023, Nameberry popularity #18.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank · boys | Births · boys | US rank · girls | Births · girls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #97 | 3,976 | — | 0 |
| 2015 | #91 | 4,602 | — | 0 |
| 2016 | #74 | 5,299 | — | 0 |
| 2017 | #62 | 5,965 | — | 0 |
| 2018 | #50 | 6,772 | — | 0 |
| 2019 | #40 | 7,501 | — | 0 |
| 2020 | #36 | 7,222 | #4,400 | 31 |
| 2021 | #31 | 7,802 | #4,372 | 32 |
| 2022 | #22 | 8,290 | #4,421 | 32 |
| 2023 | #18 | 8,152 | #4,815 | 28 |
| 2024 | #24 | 7,793 | — | 0 |
| 2025 | #19 | 8,173 | — | 0 |
World rankings
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Leo on lists
Famous Leos
- Saint Leo of CataniaBoy
Italian bishop
- Leo IBoy
XIII, popes
- Leo IBoy
VI, Byzantine Emperors
- Leo IBoy
V, Kings of Armenia
- (Georg) Leo Graf von CapriviBoy
Chancellor of Germany
- Leonardo Wilhelm "Leo" DiCaprioBoy
American actor and producer
- Leo HowardBoy
American actor
- Leo Gordon LaporteBoy
American broadcaster and author
- Leo Joseph RyanBoy
U.S. Congressman from California
- Lev "Leo" Nikolayevich TolstoyBoy
Russian novelist
- Leo ArnaudBoy
French composer
- Leo Bernard GorceyBoy
American actor
- Leo Gratten CarrollBoy
English actor
- (Clément Philibert) Léo DelibesBoy
French composer
- Clarence Leonidas "Leo" FenderBoy
American guitar maker
- Leo de BerardinisBoy
Italian actor
- Leo Freiherr von KönigBoy
German painter
- Gerard Hugh "Leo" SayerBoy
British,Australian singer,songwriter
- Leo Ku (KuiBoy
Kei), Hong Kong pop singer
- Leo MelamedBoy
American attorney; chairman of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange
- Leo SzilardBoy
Hungarian,American physicist and inventor
- Joseph Viateur "Léo" DandurandBoy
Canadian businessman and NHL team owner
- LeoBoy
stage name of Jung Taekwoon of Korean boy band VIXX
- Lionel "Leo" MessiBoy
Argentine footballer
- Leo BurkeBoy
ring name of Leonce Cormier, Canadian pro wrestler
- Leo Kipling Boyer (b. 2007)Boy
son of actors Kim Raver and Manuel Boyer
- Leo Benjamin Gordon (b. 2010)Boy
son of NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon
- Leonardo "Leo" Encinas Cruz (b. 2011)Boy
son of actor Javier Bardem and actress Penelope Cruz
- Leo Grey McElhenney (b. 2012)Boy
son of actors Kaitlin Olson and Rob McElhenney
- Leo Ezra Egan (b. 2015)Boy
late son of TV chef Kelsey Nixon and Robby Egan
- Leo Streitenfeld (b. 2009)Boy
son of actress Julie Delpy and composer Marc Streitenfeld
- Leo Powell (b. 2011)Boy
son of actor Drew Powell
- Leo James Routh (b. 2012)Boy
son of actors Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford
- Leo Federer (b. 2014)Boy
son of tennis player Roger Federer
- Leo Thames Newman (b. 2015)Boy
son of actress and model Jaime King
- Leo Hijazi (b.2017)Boy
son Jaime Pressly and Hamzi Hijazi. Twin brother to Lenon Hijazi
- Leo James Maguire (b. 2017)Boy
son of English actor Sean Maguire
- Leo HardyBoy
son of Tom Hardy and Charlotte Riley.
- Leo XIVBoy
Pope
Leo in pop culture
- Leo ValdezBoy
from Rick Riordan's "Heroes of Olympus" book series
- Uncle LeoBoy
Jerry's Uncle on 'Seinfeld'
- Leo WyattBoy
Charmed
- LeoBoy
a Zodiac sign
- Leo McGarryBoy
fictional character on the television serial drama The West Wing
- Leo FoxeBoy
Donnell, character in the novel 'A Nest of Simple Folk'
- Leo PlumbBoy
character in novel "The Nest"
- Leo BiedermanBoy
from movie "Deep Impact" played by Elijah Wood
- Leopold "Leo" FitzBoy
a character on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- Leo KoenigBoy
from the movie "Funny People"
- Leo Francis DooleyBoy
a character on the Disney XD show Lab Rats
- Leo FitzgeraldBoy
character in The Willow Falls series by Wendy Mass
- Leo BorlockBoy
character in Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl
- LeoBoy
character portrayed by Tommy Chong on That '70s Show
- Leo the LionBoy
'Loke,' a celestial spirit in the manga/anime, 'Fairy Tail'
- Leo HendrieBoy
character from the TV series "Chasing Life", played by Scott Michael Foster
- Leo RothBoy
character on the Red Band Society played by Charlie Rowe
- Leo SpitzBoy
character from the movie "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"
- Leo CastellanoBoy
The Mindy Project (Mindy and Danny's son)
- Leo CallistoBoy
Father in the Disney Jr cartoon series "Miles from Tomorrowland"
- LeoBoy
from the video game Fire Emblem: Fates.
- Leo de la IglesiaBoy
American skater from the anime 'Yuri!!! on Ice'.
- Leo BylerBoy
character from the movie "Mute"
- Leo CruzBoy
character from Netflix's "Greenhouse Academy"
- LeoBoy
character in the video game "Stardew Valley"
- Dr. Leo MarvinBoy
character from the movie "What About Bob"
- Leo WyattGirl
character in 90’s tv show Charmed