Meaning and history
French diminutive of Léon. It appears in 13th-century Arthurian legend in the Lancelot-Grail Cycle as the name of a knight who was the brother of Sir Bors. A notable modern bearer is Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi (1987–).
20062006: 137 births, rank #1,224
2007: 151 births, rank #1,171
2008: 161 births, rank #1,133
2009: 173 births, rank #1,074
2010: 228 births, rank #899
20112011: 282 births, rank #791
2012: 275 births, rank #807
2013: 317 births, rank #738
2014: 388 births, rank #662
2015: 405 births, rank #645
20162016: 475 births, rank #583
2017: 458 births, rank #596
2018: 418 births, rank #634
2019: 428 births, rank #631
2020: 398 births, rank #659
20212021: 410 births, rank #660
2022: 450 births, rank #620
2023: 609 births, rank #495
2024: 529 births, rank #562
20252025: 419 births, rank #659
Lionel moved from #562 to #659 for boys between 2024 and 2025. Its highest annual birth count came in 2023, with 609 births.