Unisex name · since 1912
Leigh
40,242 babies named Leigh in U.S. Social Security records since 1912, with the highest year being 1969. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #685 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #4,463 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 40,242
- born since 1912
- 1970s
- peak decade
40,242 babies have been named Leigh since 1912, making it today's #4463 unisex name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Leigh has been recorded 40,242 times among girls since 1912, currently ranked #4463 nationally and more common than 74% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1970s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1912 to 2025.
- #685 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #4,463 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 40,242 born since 1912
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Leigh ranks #685 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #4,463 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 40,242 born since 1912, peaking in the 1970s.
- #685 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #4,463 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 40,242
- born since 1912
- 1970s
- peak decade
Leigh's 40,242 recorded births place it above 99.05% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
49 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Leigh compares
40,242 Top 4% higher than 96% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Leigh's all-time total is 107x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Leigh | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 40,242 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 1,564 | 21 | 19,840 |
Leigh's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Leigh splits its recorded history at 1969: 64% of all births land in the more recent half, 36% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1914 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1969 peak of 1,564 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Leigh popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1912–2025
- Peak year (1969)
- 1,564
- Annual births at peak, across 114 years of records
Leigh popularity over time - boys
5,107 total births recorded since 1882 (Leigh as boys' name)
Leigh by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (11,411 births, 28% of the file).
1970s was Leigh's strongest decade.
11,411 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 28% of all-time use.
Leigh births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 49
1910s
49 births
- 1920s 101
1920s
101 births
- 1930s 127
1930s
127 births
- 1940s 791
1940s
791 births
- 1950s 4,081
1950s
4,081 births
- 1960s
1960s
10,705 births
- 1970s
1970s
11,411 births
- 1980s
1980s
8,457 births
- 1990s 2,986
1990s
2,986 births
- 2000s 768
2000s
768 births
- 2010s 513
2010s
513 births
- 2020s 253
2020s
253 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 11,411 births (28% of all-time use).
How Leigh compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Leigh's total volume
Leigh by state
Where Leigh concentrates geographically, total births since 1912
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 2,949 | 7.3% |
| #2 | North Carolina | | 2,152 | 5.3% |
| #3 | New York | | 2,048 | 5.1% |
| #4 | Pennsylvania | | 2,033 | 5.1% |
| #5 | Georgia | | 1,876 | 4.7% |
| #6 | Alabama | | 1,872 | 4.7% |
| #7 | California | | 1,871 | 4.6% |
| #8 | Tennessee | | 1,707 | 4.2% |
2,949 of 40,242 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 49 reporting states.
Leigh appears in 49 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Leigh? ▼
Where does Leigh sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Leigh most popular? ▼
Where is Leigh most popular? ▼
Is Leigh a unisex name? ▼
How long has the name Leigh been used? ▼
What names are similar to Leigh? ▼
What to do with Leigh's data
- Leigh's decade-level peak was the 1970s (11,411 total births); usage has since declined to 253 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Leighs (2,949 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Leigh
Nearby Names Like Leigh
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Leigh
Compare Leigh side by side: Leigh vs Leilani Leigh vs Leila Leigh vs Leia
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Leigh
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Leigh: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1969)
Similar record span (~113 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1912–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Leigh draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.